chigger

American  

[chig-er] / ˈtʃɪg ər /

noun

1. Also called harvest mite, redbug.  the six-legged larva of a mite of the family Trombiculidae, parasitic on humans and other vertebrates, sucking blood and causing severe itching and acting as a vector of scrub typhus and other infectious diseases.

2. chigoe.

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chigger British  

/ ˈtʃɪɡə /

noun

1. Also called: chigoe.   redbug.  the parasitic larva of any of various free-living mites of the family Trombidiidae, which causes intense itching of human skin

2. another name for the chigoe

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Etymology

Origin of chigger

1735–45, variant of chigoe

Example Sentences

However, she recalled that he had suffered 12 or 13 itchy bites around his ankles earlier in the summer, which they believed were caused by chiggers.

From Science Daily

The IgE-mediated allergy is triggered after repeated bites from ticks or chigger mites that have bitten those mammals.

From Salon

Q: My garden is full of chiggers, and the itch from the bites drives me crazy.

From Seattle Times

While Suah does not know with certainty which bug is causing his patients so much distress, he said they are similar in appearance to bites from chiggers or oak mites.

From Washington Post

He even imagines a local doctor dissecting the chigger, the smallest creature visible to the human eye—and thus of course impossible to dissect.

From Literature