chafer

[ chey-fer ]

/ ˈtʃeɪ fər /

noun

any scarabaeid beetle.

Nearby words

chaetophobia, chaetophorous, chaetopod, chaetotaxy, chafe, chafer, chafeweed, chaff, chaffer, chaffinch, chaffy

Origin of chafer

before 1000; Middle English cheaffer, chaver, Old English ceofor; akin to German Käfer

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

Examples from the Web for chafer

This is followed by a resting (pseudo-pupal) stage, and this by two successive larval stages like the grub of a chafer.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 6|Various
The cause of giving the chariot to Fiacc was that a chafer had gnawed his leg, so that death was nigh unto him.
The Most Ancient Lives of Saint Patrick|Various
The chafer was associated with the sun in Egypt, the broken egg engaged the attention of the thinking in Tibet.
Comparative Studies in Nursery Rhymes|Lina Eckenstein
Then the chafer, who was by a whole day the elder, disappeared among the blades of grass, leaving the other greatly impressed.
Little Johannes|Frederik van Eeden

Put forth thine ankle; and thou, Hans, breathe on the chafer.
The Mystery and Romance of Alchemy and Pharmacy|Charles John Samuel Thompson

British Dictionary definitions for chafer

chafer

/ (ˈtʃeɪfə) /

noun

any of various scarabaeid beetles, such as the cockchafer and rose chafer

Word Origin for chafer

Old English ceafor; related to Old Saxon kevera, Old High German chevar

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

Word Origin and History for chafer

chafer

kind of beetle, Old English ceafor "beetle, cock-chafer," from Proto-Germanic *kabraz- (cf. Old Saxon kevera, Dutch kever, Old High German chevar, German Käfer), literally "gnawer," from PIE *gep(h)- "jaw, mouth" (see jowl (n.1)).