pismire

[ pis-mahyuhr, piz- ]

noun

1. an ant.

pismire

/ ˈpɪsˌmaɪə /

noun

1. See ant
   an archaic or dialect word for an ant

Word History and Origins

Origin of pismire¹

1350–1400; Middle English pissemyre, equivalent to pisse to urinate + obsolete mire ant, perhaps < Scandinavian (compare Danish myre, Swedish myra ), cognate with Dutch mier; pejorative name from stench of formic acid proper to ants

Word History and Origins

Origin of pismire¹

C14 (literally: urinating ant, from the odour of formic acid characteristic of an ant hill): from piss + obsolete mire ant, of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse maurr, Middle Low German mīre ant

Example Sentences

As if we should look upon an ant or pismire, the parts fly the sight, and the whole considered is almost nothing.

From Project Gutenberg

At first he said he was a pismire, but the Speaker said pismire was not parliamentary, and he modified it to grasshopper.

From Project Gutenberg

I've got a thousand-legged worm at the head of a pismire flush, and it serves us right, for a lot of slovens.

From Project Gutenberg

Thou art no more than a pismire; why wilt thou seek to provoke the elephants?

From Project Gutenberg

You must understand he is an emmet of quality, and has better blood in his veins than any pismire in the molehill.

From Project Gutenberg