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horse fly

American

noun

any bloodsucking, usually large fly of the family Tabanidae, especially of the genus Tabanus, a serious pest of horses, cattle, etc.

Etymology

Origin of horse fly

1350–1400; Middle English horsfleeye

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.

See Examples For:

horse fly

You’ve seen a horse fly, you’ve seen a dragon fly, you’ve seen a house fly.

From The Guardian ● Mar. 27, 2019

Bad luck, like an avenging horse fly, seemed to chase him.

From New York Times ● Sep. 8, 2016

The Scaptia beyonceae, a rare species of horse fly found in Queensland, Australia, was named after the American singer Beyonce, in January.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2012

Most of the time, Woolf would only let the horse fly through a short sprint before pulling him up and circling back for another go.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

He was off ; he could no more return to retract his devious idiocy than he could make his horse fly to Athens.

From Active Service by Crane, Stephen

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023