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corn earworm

[ kawrn-eer-wurm ]
/ ˈkɔrn ˌɪər wɜrm /
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noun
the larva of a cosmopolitan noctuid moth, Heliothis zea, that is highly destructive to crops, especially corn, cotton, and tomato.
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Also called earworm, bollworm, cotton bollworm, tomato fruitworm.

Origin of corn earworm

An Americanism dating back to 1795–1805

Words nearby corn earworm

corn dodger, corn dog, corn dolly, cornea, corneal reflex, corn earworm, corned, Corneille, cornel, Cornelia, cornelian
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

British Dictionary definitions for corn earworm

corn earworm
noun
US the larva of the noctuid moth Heliothis armigera, which feeds on maize and many other crop plantsSee also bollworm
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
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