assassin bug

noun

1. any of numerous bugs of the family Reduviidae, feeding chiefly on other insects but including some forms that are bloodsucking parasites of mammals.

assassin bug

noun

1. any long-legged predatory, often blood-sucking, insect of the heteropterous family Reduviidae

Word History and Origins

Origin of assassin bug¹

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

This pattern is reminiscent of ones found in several living assassin bugs, although what advantage the stripes might have provided isn’t clear, Swanson said.

From Popular-Science

Perhaps this is heightened by the contrast between the pretty, trim form of the ladybird and the ugliness of the assassin bug.

From Project Gutenberg