dew-worm

American

[doo-wurm, dyoo-] / ˈduˌwɜrm, ˈdyu- /

Or dew worm

noun

Chiefly Inland North and Canadian.

the common earthworm.

dew-worm British

noun

any large earthworm that is found on the ground at night and is used as fishing bait

"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

Regionalisms

See earthworm.

Etymology

Origin of dew-worm

before 1000; Old English dēaw-wyrm (not recorded in ME); dew, worm

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Seraph, quick as a robin, was the first to pounce upon a large, but active dew-worm, which, he announced, was Ernestine.

From Project Gutenberg

But for the Trout, the dew-worm, which some also call the lob-worm, and the brandling, are the chief; and especially the first for a great Trout, and the latter for a less.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023