housefly

American  

[hous-flahy] / ˈhaʊsˌflaɪ /

Or house fly

noun

plural

houseflies

1. a medium-sized, gray-striped fly, Musca domestica, common around human habitations in nearly all parts of the world.

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housefly British  

/ ˈhaʊsˌflaɪ /

noun

1. a common dipterous fly, Musca domestica, that frequents human habitations, spreads disease, and lays its eggs in carrion, decaying vegetables, etc: family Muscidae

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Etymology

Origin of housefly

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at house, fly ¹

Example Sentences

People can be forgiving, our attention spans rival the life cycle of a housefly — one of the plot’s premises — move on.

From Washington Post • Apr. 14, 2023

We’ve been wandering the preserve for more than an hour, and all we’ve seen are a few small wasps, a couple of ants, a housefly and lots of honey bees, which is a bad sign.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 15, 2022

But hypervigilance has its limits, especially against a microscopic pathogen that can infiltrate a barn on the leg of a single housefly.

From New York Times • Feb. 24, 2022

If you see a dead housefly on a windowsill surrounded by a ghostly halo of tiny white spores, it’s a death trap.

From Science Magazine • Nov. 1, 2021

Scientists at the Department of Agriculture laboratory in Orlando, Florida, are now sterilizing the housefly in laboratory experiments and even in some field trials, using chemicals incorporated in suitable foods.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson