weevil

weevil
\ \ [15] Old English had a word wifelbeetle’, but this appears to have died out, and weevil was probably borrowed from Middle Low German wevel. Both words had the same ultimate origin, however: prehistoric Germanic *webilaz. It is not clear whether this was derived from the base *web-, *wab- ‘weave’ (source of English weavemake cloth’ and web), in which case the weevil would be the ‘weaving’ creature; or from the base *web- ‘move quickly’ (source of English weavemove in a zigzag way’, whip, etc), in which case it would be the ‘quick mover’.

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Weevil — Wee vil, n. [OE. wivel, wevil, AS. wifel, wibil; akin to OD. wevel, OHG. wibil, wibel, G. wiebel, wibel, and probably to Lith. vabalas beetle, and E. weave. See {Weave}.] (Zo[ o]l.) Any one of numerous species of snout beetles, or Rhynchophora,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Weevil — ist ein elektronisches Tanzduo bestehend aus Jonny Pilcher und Tom Betts. Sie sind aus Yorkshire, England und stehen unter Vertrag bei Wichita Recordings. Teile des Liedes Bytecry im Album Drunk On Light (Album) werden im Mac OS X Tiger Intro… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • weevil — O.E. wifel small beetle, from P.Gmc. *webilaz (Cf. O.S. wibil, O.H.G. wibil, Ger. Wiebel beetle, chafer, O.N. tordyfill dung beetle ), cognate with Lith. vabalas beetle, from PIE root *webh to weave, also to move quickly (see …   Etymology dictionary

  • weevil — ► NOUN ▪ a small beetle with an elongated snout, several kinds of which are pests of crops or stored foodstuffs. ORIGIN Old English …   English terms dictionary

  • weevil — [wē′vəl] n. [ME wevel < OE wifel, akin to MLowG wevel < IE * webh , to move to and fro, WEAVE] any of various families of beetles (esp. Curculionidae) having the head prolonged into a projecting beak that usually curves downward, and… …   English World dictionary

  • Weevil — This article is about the beetles. For other uses, see Weevil (disambiguation). Weevils Lixus angustatus Scientific classification Kingdom …   Wikipedia

  • Weevil — Les Weevils Personnage de fiction apparaissant dans Torchwood,Doctor Who Origine Inconnu Espèce …   Wikipédia en Français

  • weevil — /wee veuhl/, n. 1. Also called snout beetle. any of numerous beetles of the family Curculionidae, which have the head prolonged into a snout and which are destructive to nuts, grain, fruit, etc. 2. any of numerous related beetles. [bef. 900; ME… …   Universalium

  • weevil — n. an alfalfa; boll weevil * * * boll weevil an alfalfa …   Combinatory dictionary

  • weevil — [15] Old English had a word wifel ‘beetle’, but this appears to have died out, and weevil was probably borrowed from Middle Low German wevel. Both words had the same ultimate origin, however: prehistoric Germanic *webilaz. It is not clear whether …   The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins

  • weevil — UK [ˈwiːv(ə)l] / US [ˈwɪv(ə)l] noun [countable] Word forms weevil : singular weevil plural weevils an insect that eats plants and can destroy crops …   English dictionary

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