humblebee

[huhm-buh l-bee]

noun Chiefly British.

bumblebee.

Origin of humblebee

1400–50; late Middle English humbul-be; akin to Dutch hommel drone, German Hummelbiene kind of wild-bee, Middle Low German homelbe; probably akin to hum

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for humblebee

Historical Examples of humblebee

Humblebee and whortleberry for people that say Woos-ses-ter and Nor-wich.
The Poet at the Breakfast Table
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.
In the humblebee the tongue is longer, and it could more easily moisten the hind legs in the way suggested.
The Behavior of the Honey Bee in Pollen Collection
D. B. Casteel
A humblebee, a wild bee that makes a great noise, S. Bumble-bee, id.
An Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language
John Jamieson
A humblebee from the Square Garden boomed in and buzzed idly round the room.
Saint's Progress
John Galsworthy

British Dictionary definitions for humblebee

humblebee

noun

another name for the bumblebee

Word Origin for humblebee

C15: related to Middle Dutch hommel bumblebee, Old High German humbal; see hum

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