honeybee

American  

[huhn-ee-bee] / ˈhʌn iˌbi /

Or honey bee

noun

honeybees plural

1. any bee that collects and stores honey, especially Apis mellifera.

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honeybee British  

/ ˈhʌnɪˌbiː /

noun

1. Also called: hive bee.  any of various social honey-producing bees of the genus Apis, esp A. mellifera, which has been widely domesticated as a source of honey and beeswax

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• honeybees
  plural

Etymology

Origin of honeybee

First recorded in 1560–70; honey + bee ¹

Explanation

Honeybees are the winged insects that beekeepers like best, because they naturally produce extra honey and can be raised to produce the sweet, sticky stuff. Honeybees, as their name implies, make a lot of honey, storing surplus amounts in their waxy hives. Humans have domesticated two species of honeybee, raising them for the extra honey they produce. You can tell the difference between a bumblebee, which is native to North America, and a honeybee, native to Africa, Asia, and Europe, by comparing their bodies. Honeybees are slim, with a distinct head, while bumblebees are fat and fuzzy.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

honeybee honeybees

They compared honeybee and bumblebee colonies located side by side in Cambridgeshire, England, where soil contamination is generally considered low.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026

The researchers observed the same pattern in both Asian and European honeybee species, suggesting this strategy evolved long ago and may be widespread among honeybees.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 23, 2026

My wife and daughter are going to get a smoothie called the honeybee, which is very sweet and delicious.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 2, 2026

Larger-scale trials are now needed to assess the long-term impacts of the food on honeybee health, but the supplement could be available to beekeepers and farmers within two years.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2025

Isolate a honeybee from her sisters and she will soon die.

From "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd

Bumblebees cannot collect water in the way honeybees do, they get most of the liquid they need from nectar, so wetter nectar can help make colonies more resilient in hot weather.

From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026

Research has found acetamiprid can poison honeybees, affecting their foraging capacity and memory, while a 2024 study suggested flupyradifurone could be lethal to some bees.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

They also feed on a broad range of native animals, including important pollinators such as honeybees as well as protected small vertebrates like tree frogs and lizards.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026

Although farmers in Riverside County should be able to turn to other companies to rent their honeybees for pollination needs, Teller anticipates downstream effects for bee removal customers.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026

It feels like honeybees begin to swarm around in my gut as I realize it’s time.

From "King and the Dragonflies" by Kacen Callender