infest

[ in-fest ]

/ ɪnˈfɛst /

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See synonyms for: infest / infested / infesting / infests on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to live in or overrun to an unwanted degree or in a troublesome manner, especially as predatory animals or vermin do: Sharks infested the coastline.

to be numerous in, as anything undesirable or troublesome: the cares that infest the day.

Archaic. to harass.

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Origin of infest

1375–1425; late Middle English <Latin infestāre to assail, molest, derivative of infestus hostile

OTHER WORDS FROM infest

in·fest·er, nounre·in·fest, verb (used with object)un·in·fest·ed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH infest

infect, infest , invest

Words nearby infest

inferoanterior, inferred, inferring, infertile, infertility, infest, infestation, infeudation, infibulate, infibulation, infidel

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use infest in a sentence

Survivors describe scooping it into their helmets before lowering themselves into shark-infested waters.
How Ice Cream Became the Ultimate American Comfort Food|Matt Siegel|August 27, 2021|Eater
Being infested with those microbes can slow a mussel’s growth — and reproduction, too.
Common parasite may help mussels survive heat waves|Sid Perkins|June 16, 2021|Science News For Students
Another woman’s rental home was infested with rats and cockroaches.
Wall Street isn’t to blame for the chaotic housing market|Jerusalem Demsas|June 11, 2021|Vox
As one expert notes, 2000 through 2011 saw high levels of pirate activity, with the Gulf of Aden area off the coast of East Africa becoming the most pirate-infested part of the world, and the most dangerous for cargo ships.
Watch a Jet Suit Pilot Fly Onto a Ship to Trial the Tech for Fighting Pirates|Vanessa Bates Ramirez|May 10, 2021|Singularity Hub

Today, the roughly four dozen known species of Rafflesiaceae all infest vines from a single genus, Tetrastigma.
DNA of Giant ‘Corpse Flower’ Parasite Surprises Biologists|Christie Wilcox|April 21, 2021|Quanta Magazine
If the actions of men are necessary, if men are not free, what right has society to punish the wicked who infest it?
Superstition In All Ages (1732)|Jean Meslier
The horrible staring eyes began again to infest his journey, and seemed to accompany him wherever he went.
The Underworld|James C. Welsh
The sultry nights in Chorillos are rendered doubly unpleasant by the swarms of vermin which infest the houses.
Travels in Peru, on the Coast, in the Sierra, Across the Cordilleras and the Andes, into the Primeval Forests|J. J. von Tschudi
The same holds true of the multitude of nature demons that infest field and forest and the vicinity of streams and gorges.
Elements of Folk Psychology|Wilhelm Wundt
The Bark lice or Scale-insects should also be collected in connection with the leaves or twigs which they infest.
Directions for Collecting and Preserving Insects|C. V. Riley

British Dictionary definitions for infest

infest

/ (ɪnˈfɛst) /

verb (tr)

to inhabit or overrun in dangerously or unpleasantly large numbers

(of parasites such as lice) to invade and live on or in (a host)

Derived forms of infest

infestation, nouninfester, noun

Word Origin for infest

C15: from Latin infestāre to molest, from infestus hostile

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

infest

Origin of infest

OTHER WORDS FROM infest

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH infest

Words nearby infest

Words related to infest

How to use infest in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for infest

Derived forms of infest

Word Origin for infest