bug
Listen:Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
bug/bʌɡ/
▶noun
- 1 informal a harmful microorganism.
■ an illness caused by a microorganism.
- 2 Entomology an insect of a large order having piercing and sucking mouthparts, including aphids, leafhoppers, cicadas, and many other insects. [Order Hemiptera.]
■ chiefly N. Amer. any small insect.
- 3 informal an enthusiasm for something: they caught the sailing bug.
■ a concealed miniature microphone as used for secret recording.
- 4 an error in a computer program or system.
- 1 conceal a miniature microphone in.
- 2 informal annoy; bother.
- 3 (bug off) N. Amer. informal go away.
■ (bug out) leave quickly.
- 4 (bug out) N. Amer. informal bulge outwards.
– origin C17: of unknown origin.
'bug' also found in these Oxford entries:
aphid
- aphis
- assassin bug
- bedbug
- bite
- bugbear
- bug-eyed
- chafer
- chinch bug
- cicada
- coreopsis
- doodlebug
- froghopper
- heteropteran
- homopteran
- jigaboo
- June bug
- kissing bug
- lantern fly
- leafhopper
- lightning bug
- May bug
- mealy bug
- millennium bug
- mirid
- plant louse
- pond skater
- scale insect
- shield bug
- sow bug
- stink bug
- treehopper
- water boatman
- water measurer
- water scorpion
- whitefly
- Y2K
