black fly

noun

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

Nearby words

black english vernacular, black eye, black ferns, black flag, black flux, black fly, black fog, black forest, black forest cake, black fox, black friar

Origin of black fly

First recorded in 1600–10

Also called buffalo gnat.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for blackfly

The blackfly and mosquito attack both man and beast in maddening millions.
Animal Sanctuaries in Labrador|William Wood

British Dictionary definitions for blackfly (1 of 2)

blackfly

/ (ˈblækˌflaɪ) /

noun plural -flies

a black aphid, Aphis fabae, that infests beans, sugar beet, and other plantsAlso called: bean aphid

British Dictionary definitions for blackfly (2 of 2)

black fly

noun

any small blackish stout-bodied dipterous fly of the family Simuliidae, which sucks the blood of man, mammals, and birdsSee 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

Medicine definitions for blackfly

black fly

n.

Any of various small dark humpbacked flies of whom the females are aggressive biters and serve as vectors in the transmission of onchocerciasis.