chigger

[ chig-er ]

noun

1. Also called harvest mite, redbug. the six-legged larva of a mite of the family Trombiculidae, parasitic on humans and other vertebrates, sucking blood and causing severe itching and acting as a vector of scrub typhus and other infectious diseases.
2. chigoe.

chigger

/ ˈtʃɪɡə /

noun

1. Also calledchigoeredbug the parasitic larva of any of various free-living mites of the family Trombidiidae, which causes intense itching of human skin
2. another name for the chigoe

Word History and Origins

Origin of chigger¹

1735–45, Americanism; variant of chigoe

Example Sentences

The IgE-mediated allergy is triggered after repeated bites from ticks or chigger mites that have bitten those mammals.

From Salon

Q: My garden is full of chiggers, and the itch from the bites drives me crazy.

From Seattle Times

While Suah does not know with certainty which bug is causing his patients so much distress, he said they are similar in appearance to bites from chiggers or oak mites.

From Washington Post

He even imagines a local doctor dissecting the chigger, the smallest creature visible to the human eye—and thus of course impossible to dissect.

From Literature

If 2020 were a camping trip, the poison ivy would have chiggers on it.

From Washington Post