| weevil | <zoology> Any one of numerous species of snout beetles, or Rhynchophora, in which the head is elongated and usually curved downward. Many of the species are very injurious to cultivated plants. The larvae of some of the species live in nuts, fruit, and grain by eating out the interior, as the plum weevil, or curculio, the nut weevils, and the grain weevil (see under Plum, Nut, and Grain). The larvae of other species bore under the bark and into the pith of trees and various other plants, as the pine weevils (see under Pine). See also Pea weevil, Rice weevil, Seed weevil. Origin: 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. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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