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wax insect

noun

any of several scale insects that secrete a commercially valuable waxy substance, especially a Chinese scale insect, Ericerus pe-la.

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Words nearby wax insect

wax and wane, wax bean, wax cap, wax flower, wax gourd, wax insect, wax jack, wax light, wax moth, wax museum, wax myrtle

Origin of wax insect

First recorded in 1805–15
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for wax insect

wax insect

noun

any of various scale insects that secrete wax or a waxy substance, esp the oriental species Ceroplastes ceriferus, which produces Chinese wax
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