Pismire
Pronunciation
- IPA: /ˈpɪsmaɪə/
Origin
From Middle English pissemyre, equivalent to piss + mire ("ant"). So called due to the smell of anthills. Compare pissant.
Full definition of pismire
Noun
pismire
(plural pismires)- (regional) An ant.
- late 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer, “The Summoner's Taleâ€, in The Canterbury Tales:He is as angry as a pissemyre,
Þogh þat he have al þat he kan desire ... - 1658, Sir Thomas Browne, The Garden of Cyrus, Folio Society (2007), page 189:Much there is not of wonder in the confused Houses of Pismires, though much in their busie life and actions ...
- 1993, Anthony Burgess, A Dead Man in Deptford:We are scurrying emmets or pismires with our sad little comedies.