vermiculate
[verb ver-mik-yuh-leyt; adjective ver-mik-yuh-lit, -leyt]
- to work or ornament with wavy lines or markings resembling the form or tracks of a worm.
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- worm-eaten, or appearing as if worm-eaten.
- vermicular.
- sinuous; tortuous; intricate: vermiculate thought processes.
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Origin of vermiculate
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
meanderingwindingconvolutedlabyrinthinecircuitousindirectserpentinetwistingcurvedsinuouscurlycoiledbentcrookedroundaboutsnakyzigzaganfractuousflexuousinvoluteExamples from the Web for vermiculate
Historical Examples
Vermiculate: worm-like in form: a marking with wormlike tracings.
Explanation of Terms Used in EntomologyJohn. B. Smith
He regarded the thing as vermiculate, and ready to corrupt the obedience.
The Elect LadyGeorge MacDonald
Religion itself in the hearts of the unreal, is a dead thing; what seems life in it, is the vermiculate life of a corpse.
Hope of the GospelGeorge MacDonald
Some that I caught and examined closely had, as Scott says, "vermiculate marks on the back very plain and distinct."
Fishing With The FlyCharles F. Orvis and Others
What a breeding nest of vermiculate cares and pains was this human heart of ours!
Thomas Wingfold, CurateGeorge MacDonald
vermiculate
- (tr) to decorate with wavy or wormlike tracery or markings
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- vermicular; sinuous
- worm-eaten or appearing as if worm-eaten
- (of thoughts, etc) insinuating; subtly tortuous
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Word Origin
C17: from Latin vermiculātus in the form of worms, from vermis worm
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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