bumblebee

or bum·ble bee

[ buhm-buhl-bee ]

noun

1. any of several large, hairy social bees bee of the family Apidae.

bumblebee

/ ˈbʌmbəlˌbiː /

noun

1. any large hairy social bee of the genus Bombus and related genera, of temperate regions: family Apidae

Word History and Origins

Origin of bumblebee¹

First recorded in 1520–30; bumble ² + bee ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of bumblebee¹

C16: from bumble ² + bee ¹

Example Sentences

A daisy tinged with ultraviolet petals signals to a bumblebee: dinner’s served.

From Salon

"We document a substantial shift in the functional composition of bumblebee communities that is tied to a long-term increase of summer temperatures in North America," the authors write.

From Salon

In terms of shape, it was found that only the plants pollinated by bumblebees showed clear differences between the soil types, while the hand-pollinated plant groups remained largely the same.

From Science Daily

I started watching for them: mason bees, sweat bees, leaf cutter bees, and my favorite, bumblebees.

From Seattle Times

The researchers wanted to test whether using caffeine, which has been shown to improve learning in honeybees and bumblebees, might improve the ants' ability to learn the bait location and guide their nestmates back there.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• ant
• aphid
• bee
• beetle
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• fruit fly
• gnat
• grasshopper
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• mite
• mosquito
• moth
• pest
• spider
• termite
• tick