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THESAURUS
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Louse
WORDNET DICTIONARY
Noun Louse has 4 senses
- louse(n = noun.animal) sucking louse - wingless usually flattened bloodsucking insect parasitic on warm-blooded animals; Array is a kind of insect
- louse(n = noun.person) dirt ball, insect, worm - a person who has a nasty or unethical character undeserving of respect; Array is a kind of disagreeable person, unpleasant person
- louse(n = noun.animal) plant louse - any of several small insects especially aphids that feed by sucking the juices from plants; Array is a kind of homopteran, homopterous insect
- louse(n = noun.animal) bird louse, biting louse - wingless insect with mouth parts adapted for biting; mostly parasitic on birds; Array is a kind of insect
is a member of anoplura, order anoplura
has particulars: common louse, pediculus humanus, head louse, pediculus capitis, body louse, cootie, pediculus corporis, crab, crab louse, phthirius pubis, pubic louse
Derived form adjective lousy2
has particulars: aphid, adelgid, grape louse, grape phylloxera, phylloxera vitifoleae, jumping plant louse, psylla, psyllid, oak blight
Derived form adjective lousy2
is a member of mallophaga, order mallophaga
has particulars: chicken louse, menopon gallinae, menopon palladum, shaft louse
Derived form adjective lousy2
CIDE DICTIONARY
Louse, n. [OE. lous, AS. l, pl. l; akin to D. luis, G. laus, OHG. l, Icel. l, Sw. lus, Dan. luus; perh. so named because it is destructive, and akin to E. lose, loose.].
- Any one of numerous species of small, wingless, suctorial, parasitic insects belonging to a tribe (
Pediculina ), now usually regarded as degraded Hemiptera. To this group belong of the lice of man and other mammals; as, the head louse of man (Pediculus capitis ), the body louse (Pediculus vestimenti ), and the crab louse (Phthirius pubis ), and many others. SeeCrab louse ,Dog louse ,Cattle louse , etc., under Crab, Dog, etc. [1913 Webster] - Any one of numerous small mandibulate insects, mostly parasitic on birds, and feeding on the feathers. They are known as Mallophaga, or bird lice, though some occur on the hair of mammals. They are usually regarded as degraded Pseudoneuroptera. See Mallophaga. [1913 Webster]
- Any one of the numerous species of aphids, or plant lice. See Aphid. [1913 Webster]
- Any small crustacean parasitic on fishes. See Branchiura, and Ichthvophthira. [1913 Webster]" The term is also applied to various other parasites; as, the whale louse, beelouse, horse louse." [1913 Webster]
Louse, v. t.
To clean from lice. Swift. [1913 Webster]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
Louse, n. & v.
--n.
1 (pl. lice) a a parasitic insect, Pediculus humanus, infesting the human hair and skin and transmitting various diseases. b any insect of the order Anoplura or Mallophaga parasitic on mammals, birds, fish, or plants.
2 sl. (pl. louses) a contemptible or unpleasant person.
--v.tr. remove lice from.
--n.
1 (pl. lice) a a parasitic insect, Pediculus humanus, infesting the human hair and skin and transmitting various diseases. b any insect of the order Anoplura or Mallophaga parasitic on mammals, birds, fish, or plants.
2 sl. (pl. louses) a contemptible or unpleasant person.
--v.tr. remove lice from.
Idiom
louse up sl. make a mess of.
Etymology
OE lus, pl. lys
THESAURUS
Louse
SOB, bastard, bugger, cat flea, chigoe, cockroach, crab, creep, cur, dog, dog flea, fart, flea, grayback, heel, hood, hooligan, jerk, jigger, meanie, mite, mother, nit, parasite, pill, rat, red bug, roach, sand flea, shit, shithead, shitheel, skunk, snake, stinkard, stinker, toad, turd, vermin, weevil, wretchROGET THESAURUS
Louse
Uncleanness
N uncleanness, impurity, immundity, immundicity, impurity, defilement, contamination, defoedation, soilure, soiliness, abomination, leaven, taint, tainture, fetor, decay, putrescence, putrefaction, corruption, mold, must, mildew, dry rot, mucor, rubigo, slovenry, slovenliness, squalor, dowdy, drab, slut, malkin, slattern, sloven, slammerkin, slammock, slummock, scrub, draggle-tail, mudlark, dust-man, sweep, beast, dirt, filth, soil, slop, dust, cobweb, flue, smoke, soot, smudge, smut, grit, grime, raff, sossle, sozzle, sordes, dregs, grounds, lees, argol, sediment, settlement heeltap, dross, drossiness, mother, precipitate, scoriae, ashes, cinders, recrement, slag, scum, froth, hogwash, ditchwater, dishwater, bilgewater, rinsings, cheeseparings, sweepings, offscourings, outscourings, off scum, caput mortuum, residuum, sprue, fecula, clinker, draff, scurf, scurfiness, exuviae, morphea, fur, furfur, dandruff, tartar, riffraff, vermin, louse, flea, bug, chinch, mud, mire, quagmire, alluvium, silt, sludge, slime, slush, slosh, sposh, spawn, offal, gurry, lientery, garbage, carrion, excreta, slough, peccant humor, pus, matter, suppuration, lienteria, faeces, feces, excrement, ordure, dung, crap, shit, sewage, sewerage, muck, coprolite, guano, manure, compost, dunghill, colluvies, mixen, midden, bog, laystall, sink, privy, jakes, toilet, john, head, cess, cesspool, sump, sough, cloaca, latrines, drain, sewer, common sewer, Cloacina, dust hole, sty, pigsty, lair, den, Augean stable, sink of corruption, slum, rookery, dirty, filthy, grimy, unclean, impure, soiled, not to be handled with kid gloves, dusty, snuffy, smutty, sooty, smoky, thick, turbid, dreggy, slimy, mussy, slovenly, untidy, messy, uncleanly, unkempt, sluttish, dowdy, draggle-tailed, uncombed, unscoured, unswept, unwiped, unwashed, unstrained, unpurified, squalid, lutose, slammocky, slummocky, sozzly, nasty, coarse, foul, offensive, abominable, beastly, reeky, reechy, fetid, decayed, moldy, musty, mildewed, rusty, moth-eaten, mucid, rancid, weak, bad, gone bad, etercoral, lentiginous, touched, fusty, effete, reasty, rotten, corrupt, tainted, high, flyblown, maggoty, putrid, putrefactive, putrescent, putrefied, saprogenic, saprogenous, purulent, carious, peccant, fecal, feculent, stercoraceous, excrementitious, scurfy, scurvy, impetiginous, gory, bloody, rotting, rotten as a pear, rotten as cheese, crapulous, gross, fimetarious, fimicolous, they that touch pitch will be defiled.
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