anopheles

[ uh-nof-uh-leez ]

noun,plural a·noph·e·les.
  1. any mosquito of the genus Anopheles, certain species of which are vectors of the parasite causing malaria in humans, distinguished from other mosquitoes by the absence of breathing tubes in the larvae and by the head-downward stance of the adult while resting or feeding.

Origin of anopheles

1
1895–1900; <New Latin <Greek anōphelḗs useless, hurtful, harmful, equivalent to an-an-1 + -ōpheles- variant stem of óphelos profit; earlier (a)n- (with vowel lengthening) + opheles-, written in Mycenaean Greek as nopere

Other words from anopheles

  • a·noph·e·line [uh-nof-uh-lahyn, -lin], /əˈnɒf əˌlaɪn, -lɪn/, adjective, noun

Words Nearby anopheles

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use anopheles in a sentence

  • The sexual cycle can take place only within the body of one genus of mosquito, anopheles.

    A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis | James Campbell Todd
  • A bite from an anopheles mosquito does not cause malaria unless the particular mosquito has previously bitten a malaria patient.

  • The stegomyia flies and bites in the early afternoon and again at night, the anopheles flies and bites after sunset.

  • The chief danger of infection is at night (the anopheles bite mostly at this time).

  • The draining of the fens has driven the anopheles mosquito from England, and our countrymen no longer suffer from 'ague.'

    Outspoken Essays | William Ralph Inge

British Dictionary definitions for anopheles

anopheles

/ (əˈnɒfɪˌliːz) /


nounplural -les
  1. any of various mosquitoes constituting the genus Anopheles, some species of which transmit the malaria parasite to man

Origin of anopheles

1
C19: via New Latin from Greek anōphelēs useless, from an- + ōphelein to help, from ophelos help

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