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budworm

American  
[buhd-wurm] / ˈbʌdˌwɜrm /

noun

  1. any of several lepidopterous larvae, especially the spruce budworm, that attack the buds of plants.


Etymology

Origin of budworm

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50; bud 1 + worm


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.

See Examples For:

An epidemic of western spruce budworm that swept through this area in 2012 weakened trees that later were killed by beetles.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 1, 2023

Warming temperatures are increasing insect infestations from mountain pine beetles and spruce budworm, which have killed large swathes of forest.

From Salon ● May 13, 2022

“You can see that they’re stressed. When that happens, they get attacked by beetles, spruce budworm and mistletoe. They struggle to survive.”

From Washington Times ● Oct. 2, 2018

The really significant findings were made when the investigators turned for comparison to a remote creek thirty miles from the nearest area sprayed for budworm control.

From The New Yorker ● Jan. 3, 2017

There are cases on record where natural parasitism has kept the budworm under control more effectively than spraying.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

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