cotton stainer

American

noun

any of several large red-and-black bugs of the genus Dysdercus that puncture oranges and cotton bolls and discolor cotton fibers: a serious pest in America and India.

cotton stainer British

noun

any of various heteropterous insects of the genus Dysdercus: serious pests of cotton, piercing and staining the cotton bolls: family Pyrrhocoridae

"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

Etymology

Origin of cotton stainer

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

cotton stainer

The Egyptian cotton seed bug or cotton stainer belongs to another genus, being Oxycarenus hyalinipennis.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 5 "Cosway" to "Coucy" by Various

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