Ant
Pronunciation
- enPR: ănt, IPA: /ænt/
- Rhymes: -ænt
- Homophones: aunt in some accents
Origin
From Middle English amte, amete, from Old English Ç£mette ("ant"), from Proto-Germanic *Ä“maitijÇ ("ant", literally biting-thing, cutter), from Proto-Germanic *Ä“- ("off, away") + *maitanÄ… ("to cut"), from Proto-Indo-European *mai- ("to cut"). Cognate with German Ameise and Emse ("ant"). See also emmet.
Full definition of ant
Noun
ant
(plural ants)- Any of various insects in the family Formicidae in the order Hymenoptera, typically living in large colonies composed almost entirely of flightless females
- (Internet) A Web spider
Hyponyms
- (insect in Formicidae) army ant, black garden ant, bull ant, carpenter ant, fire ant, garden ant, honey-pot ant, leafcutter ant, pharaoh ant, piss ant, red ant, sauba ant, thief ant, wood ant