borer

American  

[bawr-er, bohr-] / ˈbɔr ər, ˈboʊr- /

noun

1. a person or thing that bores or pierces.

2. Machinery. a tool used for boring; auger.

3. Zoology.

   1. any of several insects that bore into trees, fruits, etc., especially a beetle that bores into the woody part of plants.

   2. any of various mollusks, worms, etc., that bore into wood, stone, coral, or shells.

4. a marsipobranch fish, as a hagfish, that bores into other fishes to feed on their flesh.

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borer British  

/ ˈbɔːrə /

noun

1. a machine or hand tool for boring holes

2. any of various insects, insect larvae, molluscs, or crustaceans that bore into rock or plant material, esp wood See also woodborer corn borer marine borer rock borer

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Etymology

Origin of borer

Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; bore ², -er ¹

Example Sentences

Ideally, he'd plant a variety that could resist the coffee berry borer, a beetle that feasts on coffee cherries, and that would ripen with greater uniformity.

From Salon

Lessons learned from the war on the oak borer could be applied to future invaders.

From Los Angeles Times

Christine Buhl, a forest health specialist for the Oregon Department of Forestry, plunges a tool called an increment borer into the dead tree’s trunk.

From Seattle Times

The biochar — which the city produces from trees blown down in storms or damaged by the emerald ash borer beetle — traps carbon, conserves water and improves the soil.

From Seattle Times

Longhorn beetles and other wood borers come to feast on the sap from burned trees while they're still smoldering.

From Salon