crotonbug

or Cro·ton bug

[kroht-n-buhg]

noun

German cockroach.

Origin of crotonbug

1855–60, Americanism; allegedly after the Croton Reservoir in Westchester Co., N.Y.; its opening in 1842 was supposedly coincident with a rise in New York City's cockroach population; see bug¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

British Dictionary definitions for croton bug

Croton bug

noun

US another name for the German cockroach

Word Origin

C19: named after the Croton river, whose water was piped to New York City in 1842

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