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hematophagous

American  
[hee-muh-tof-uh-guhs, hem-uh-] / ˌhi məˈtɒf ə gəs, ˌhɛm ə- /

adjective

  1. feeding on blood, as the vampire bat.

Etymology

Origin of hematophagous

First recorded in 1850–55; hemato- + -phagous

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.

It also suggests that the evolution of hematophagy was more complicated than had been suspected, with hematophagous males in the distant past.

From Science Daily

That's noteworthy because, among modern-day mosquitoes, only females are hematophagous, meaning that they use piercing mouthparts to feed on the blood of people and other animals.

From Science Daily

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.