fruit fly
Americannoun
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any of numerous small dipterous insects of the family Tephritidae, the larvae of which feed on the fruit of various plants.
noun
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any small dipterous fly of the family Trypetidae , which feed on and lay their eggs in plant tissues See also gallfly
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any dipterous fly of the genus Drosophila See drosophila
Etymology
Origin of fruit fly
First recorded in 1745–55
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.
Millions of sterile male Mexican fruit flies will be released over parts of San Diego County, after one mated female fruit fly was detected around Spring Valley, according to food and agriculture regulators.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
The Mexican fruit fly enters California when travelers bring fruits or vegetables back from regions that are infested, according to the department.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
The new map of neural connections, known as a connectome, extends a previously published fruit fly brain connectome by adding the fly's spinal cord equivalent, called the nerve cord.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 10, 2026
"Export markets demand zero tolerance on pests. Even if inspectors find a single fruit fly, the entire consignment is discarded, leading to huge losses," he says.
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2026
But naturally arising mutants—the bread and butter of fruit fly geneticists—were far too rare.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
