ladybugn.
/ˈleɪdɪbʌɡ/, U.S. /ˈleɪdiˌbəɡ/ Now chiefly North American.
= ladybird n. 3.
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the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > order Coleoptera or beetles and weevils > [noun] > Polyphaga (omnivorous) > superfamily Diversicornia > family Coccinellidae > member of (lady-bird)
ladycow1583
golden knop1592
cow-lady1656
ladybird1673
lady-clock1682
lady fly1714
ladybeetle1766
ladybug1787
bishy barnabee1789
coccinella1815
soldier1848
Judycow1855
bishop1875
coccinellid1887
1699 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 21 50 I have happened upon..three or four sorts of Lady-Bugs.
1787 F. Grose Superstitions 64 in Provinc. Gloss. It is held extremely unlucky to kill a cricket, a lady-bug, a swallow [etc.].
1844 ‘J. Slick’ High Life N.Y. II. 30 Like lady bugs round a full blown rose.
1886 Harper's Mag. June 45/2 We may discover lady-bugs—small red or yellow and black beetles—among our vines.
1910 N.Y. Evening Post 4 Apr. Millions of ladybugs are receiving free transportation..to the melon fields of the Imperial valley.
1954 F. C. Lane All about Insect World 129 When these fuzzy plant lice..threatened California's orange groves, the ladybug was brought over from Australia because she dotes on mealy bugs.
1972 L. A. Swan & C. S. Papp Common Insects N. Amer. xx. 403 Lady Beetles (Coccinellidae). The common British name for these beetles, ‘ladybird’, is still used to some extent in America; ‘ladybug’ is probably the most familiar name.
2007 San Diego Tribune (Nexis) 14 Mar. Sure, they look friendly, but make no mistake: The ladybug is a merciless killing machine, rapaciously feasting on live prey.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2008; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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