gnat
/næt/
gnat
English
Noun Top 38,963
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Definition
Any small insect of the order Diptera, specifically within the suborder Nematocera.
Etymology
From Middle English gnat, from Old English gnætt (“gnat; midge; mosquito”), from Proto-West Germanic *gnatt, *gnattu, from Proto-Germanic *gnattaz, *gnattuz (“gnat”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰneHdʰn-, *gʰneHd- (“to gnaw; scratch”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰen- (“to gnaw; bite; scratch; grind”). Cognate with Low German Gnatte (“gnat”), dialectal Swedish gnatt (“mosquito”), German Gnatz (“scabs; rash; scabies; stinginess”). Related also gnit and gnaw.
Example Sentences
- ""Away thou whining gnat, and trouble me not!""
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