thrips

American  

[thrips] / θrɪps /

noun

thrips plural

1. any of several minute insects of the order Thysanoptera, that have long, narrow wings fringed with hairs and that infest and feed on a wide variety of weeds and crop plants.

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thrips British  

/ θrɪps /

noun

1. any of various small slender-bodied insects of the order Thysanoptera, typically having piercing mouthparts and narrow feathery wings and feeding on plant sap. Some species are serious plant pests

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• thrips
  plural

Etymology

Origin of thrips

1650–60; < New Latin < Greek thríps (singular) woodworm

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

thrips

Researchers experimented with the effect of red, white, black and combination-colored nets on deterring onion thrips from eating Kujo leeks, also called Welsh onions.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 14, 2024

The yellow attracts fungus gnats, aphids, thrips, leaf miners and other harmful pests feeding on your plants.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 17, 2024

But warming temperatures driven by climate change are creating more hospitable conditions for thrips, the insect that carries INSV, to thrive.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 21, 2022

"Lady beetles and their larvae will consume many soft-bodied insects including thrips, mealybugs, and some scale insects."

From Salon ● Feb. 7, 2022

Six species of cotton insects, along with an assortment of thrips, fruit moths, leaf hoppers, caterpillars, mites, aphids, wireworms, and many others now are able to ignore the farmer’s assault with chemical sprays.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson