black fly

American

noun

any of the minute, black gnats of the dipterous family Simuliidae, having aquatic larvae.

black fly British

noun

any small blackish stout-bodied dipterous fly of the family Simuliidae , which sucks the blood of man, mammals, and birds See also buffalo gnat

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of black fly

First recorded in 1600–10

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The scans revealed three insects: a fungus gnat, a black fly, and an ancient ant.

From Science Daily • Jun. 4, 2026

Between Barthes and Berlant, Alanis gets to have the black fly in her chardonnay and drink it, too.

From Salon • Nov. 29, 2024

Her classmates keep interrupting her to explain why the situations she’s describing — the black fly in the Chardonnay, etc. — aren’t actually ironic.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 16, 2022

Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton famously saw a black fly land between her eyes during one of her debates against then-candidate Donald Trump.

From Fox News • Aug. 20, 2020

A huge, black fly clung to the grimy cardboard wall in front of us.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023