horseleech

American  

[hawrs-leech] / ˈhɔrsˌlitʃ /

noun

1. a large leech, as Haemopis marmoratis, that infests the mouth and nasal passages of horses.

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horseleech British  

/ ˈhɔːsˌliːtʃ /

noun

1. any of several large carnivorous freshwater leeches of the genus Haemopis, esp H. sanguisuga

2. an archaic name for a veterinary surgeon

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Etymology

Origin of horseleech

First recorded in 1400–50, horseleech is from the late Middle English word horsleych. See horse, leech ¹

Example Sentences

Mr. Pabsby was indeed a horseleech of the severest kind.

From Ralph the Heir by Trollope, Anthony

Prince d'Artois has withal the strangest horseleech: a moonstruck, much-enduring individual, of Neuchatel in Switzerland,—named Jean Paul Marat.

From The French Revolution by Carlyle, Thomas

Yet, as regarded men generally, Sally was a daughter of the horseleech!

From Madame Flirt A Romance of 'The Beggar's Opera' by Pearce, Charles Edward

Could I be one of their flattering panders, I would hang on their ears like a horseleech, till I were full, and then drop off.

From The Duchess of Malfi by Webster, John

Each incoming administration is bedeviled by hordes of applicants, as greedy as the daughters of the horseleech.

From The Galaxy, June 1877 Vol. XXIII.—June, 1877.—No. 6. by Various