pest

¹

[ pest ]

noun

1. an annoying or troublesome person, animal, or thing; nuisance.

   Synonyms: annoyance

2. an insect or other small animal that harms or destroys garden plants, trees, etc.
3. a deadly epidemic disease, especially a plague; pestilence.

   Synonyms: epidemic, scourge, pandemic

Pest

²

[ pest; Hungarian pesht ]

noun

1. Budapest

pest

/ pɛst /

noun

1. a person or thing that annoys, esp by imposing itself when it is not wanted; nuisance
2. 1. any organism that damages crops, injures or irritates livestock or man, or reduces the fertility of land
   2. ( as modifier )

      pest control

3. rare.
   an epidemic disease or pestilence

Other Words From

• de-pest verb (used with object)

Word History and Origins

Origin of pest¹

First recorded in 1545–55, pest is from the Latin word pestis plague

Word History and Origins

Origin of pest¹

C16: from Latin pestis plague, of obscure origin

Example Sentences

Neonicotinoids are a group of insecticides used in agriculture, horticulture and veterinary medicine to control pests - but they also harm bees and other beneficial insects.

From BBC

Livestock Insects Research Laboratory, Kerrville, said Tidwell's findings are a great example of a researcher identifying an unknown aspect of a pest's biology that could be leveraged and used as a novel control tool.

From Science Daily

In her letter, Ms Allen said foxes had “unearned reputations” as pests and this was partly due to derogatory descriptions of them.

From BBC

It includes crops destroyed by pests or extreme weather, produce or meat that spoils in transport because of faulty packaging and food that goes bad at market before it can be sold.

From Los Angeles Times

Insecticides have been used for centuries to counteract widespread pest damage to valuable food crops.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• blight
• bug
• contagion
• epidemic
• infection
• plague
• scourge
• virus