termiten.

Brit.

/ˈtəːmʌɪt/, U.S.

/ˈtərˌmaɪt/

Origin: A borrowing from Latin. Etymons: Latin termites, termes.

Etymology: Inferred singular < post-classical Latin termites, plural of termes termes n.; perhaps compare -ite suffix¹. Compare French termite (1797), German Termite (1794 or earlier). Compare earlier termes n.

1. Any of the numerous small eusocial insects constituting the order (or infraorder) Isoptera, found in warm regions worldwide, typically feeding mainly on detritus but also highly destructive to timber. Also called white ant.Although they superficially resemble ants, termites are more closely related to cockroaches, and are now often classified as a subdivision of the order Blattodea. Colonies range in size from a few hundred to several million individuals, typically separated into three castes of workers, soldiers, and fertile adults (male and female).Recorded earliest in plural, some instances of which may instead represent the plural of termes n., which is formally identical; cf. note at that entry.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites)

white ant1625

wood-ant1709

termes1773

termite1781

termite ant1815

duck-ant1851

magnetic termite1935

mudguts1952

1781 H. Smeathman in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 71 160 These turret nests, built by two different species of Termites.

1789 Gentleman's Mag. Sept. 830/1 Hottentots feed on the termites, or white ants, driven out by rain.

1804 Kirby's Wonderful & Sci. Museum 2 416 The Termite is found in almost all the western regions of the African Continent, between Cape Bojador, and Cape Blanco.

1860 R. F. Burton in Jrnl. Royal Geogr. Soc. 1859 29 178 They [sc. ant-hills] are generally built by the termite under some shady tree, which prevents too rapid drying.

1880 Evening Standard 3 Apr. 4/3 The whole village is said to be infested with the termite, which in the head resembles greatly the ant... It attacks woodwork, which it eats away.

a1933 J. A. Thomson Biol. for Everyman (1934) I. xiii. 279 Termites feed mainly on woody materials and on decaying vegetation.

1962 New Scientist 19 Apr. 86/2 Pheromones of various kinds are supposed to affect caste differentiation and colony structure in termites.

2009 I. Thomson Dead Yard v. 71 A leather-seated armchair visibly eaten by termites.

2. In extended use. A person who or thing which undermines, weakens, or destroys something, esp. in an unseen or underhand manner; spec. (in a political context) a subversive, a saboteur.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > lack of subjection > rebelliousness > revolution > [noun] > revolutionary > one who overthrows

subversor1548

walterer1572

subversive1834

subversionist1850

termite1943

1943 Standard Weekly (Sydney) 11 Feb. 1/5 The secretary of the party said ‘We can't say too much; there are termites about.’

1951 Economist 8 Dec. 1402/2 ‘Any man who betrays the people's trust in a public office is a public enemy..’ declared the new chairman..calling on his fellow members to punish the ‘termites’ relentlessly.

1987 R. A. Thompson & L. S. Thompson Egoshell ii. C-viii. 210 Buildings..are continuously being eaten away by the ‘termites’ of smog.

1998 BBC Top Gear Mag. Sept. 19/2 The No 10 termites have eaten at Mr Prescott's radical foundations.

2013 Sunday Mail (S. Austral.) (Nexis) 13 Oct. (Suppl.) 12 Little indulgences are fine but too many are termites to a financial plan.

Compounds

termite ant n. now rare a termite; cf. white ant n. 1.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites)

white ant1625

wood-ant1709

termes1773

termite1781

termite ant1815

duck-ant1851

magnetic termite1935

mudguts1952

1815 Q. Rev. 12 Index 532 Depredations of the termite ants.

1849 Sketches Nat. Hist.: Mammalia IV. 208 The Great Ant-eater, or Ant-bear... The limbs are..furnished with huge hook-like claws well adapted for making forcible entrance into the solid dwellings of the termite ants.

1943 Jrnl. Mammalogy 24 160 Certain few animals required special diets, such as termite ants (in the mounds) for anteaters.

2004 T. Hendtlass in J. Fulcher & L. C. Jain Appl. Intelligent Syst. v. 158 Behaviour can be modelled on the way that termite ants sort eggs from faeces.

termite colony n. a group of termites descended from a single pair of fertile adults (king and queen) and having a complex social structure comprising several castes; (also) a termite mound.

ΚΠ

1878 Belgravia Oct. 456 In a termite colony there is but one king and queen, the royal couple being the true parents of the colony.

1915 U.S. Bureau Entomol. 94 ii. 74 If the termite colony is opened up and disorganized, the ants at once take advantage of the opportunity and carry away the termites.

1978 G. B. Williams Pest Extermination Handbk. i. 7 Termite colonies often contain more members than do many large cities.

2010 Chicago Citizen 17 Mar. 27 In addition to destroying housing structures, a termite colony can quickly decimate flooring, carpeting and wallpaper.

termite heap n. = termite mound n.; cf. ant heap n. at ant n.¹ Compounds 2.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) > nest

anthill1781

termitary1826

termite hill1835

termite mound1854

termitarium1855

termite heap1867

1867 E. L. Layard Birds S. Afr. 36 Suddenly it..clutches up a cowering lark or unsuspecting gerboa, and flies away with it to the nearest termite heap.

1920 Blackwood's Mag. Feb. 205/1 Several enormous termite heaps.

2012 R. Gross Being Human v. 110 A two-year old chimp, Merlin, who picked up a thin twig and..prodded with it at the surface of a termite heap.

termite hill n. = termite mound n.; cf. anthill n.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) > nest

anthill1781

termitary1826

termite hill1835

termite mound1854

termitarium1855

termite heap1867

1835 Penny Cycl. III. 352/2 The termite hills are here as numerous as on the banks of the Senegal.

1952 Man 52 11/1 The proportions of fat and protein in many insects are very high and in Africa a termite hill may be a valued family possession.

2010 N. Amer. Rev. June 40/3 We learned how to build mudstoves out of abandoned termite hills.

termite mound n. a large, often conical mound of soil and termite faeces constructed as a nest by a colony of termites of certain tropical species.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) > nest

anthill1781

termitary1826

termite hill1835

termite mound1854

termitarium1855

termite heap1867

1854 Kidd's Own Jrnl. 5 31/2 Termite mounds characterise the haunts of the ant-eater.

1977 ‘J. McVean’ Bloodspoor x. 96 Haston was lying by a termite mound.

2002 Trav. Afr. Winter 45/2 The ubiquitous termite mounds are often frequented by bands of Dwarf mongoose or used by pairs of Red-and-yellow barbet to perform their outrageous clockwork duets.

termite nest n. a structure made and occupied by a colony of termites.Termite nests are constructed largely from termite faeces, and may be located beneath the ground, in dry or rotting wood, and in large epigeal mounds.

ΚΠ

1852 C. B. Mansfield Paraguay, Brazil, & Plate (1856) Contents 79 Monkeys. Snakes. Birds. Termite Nests.

1895 Agric. Bull. Malay Penins. Jan. 80 In opening termite nests, I have often seen roots of trees and other plants..surrounded by working termites.

1971 Washington Post 12 Dec. k32 Some termite nests have air conditioning and humidity control built in by the workers.

2011 C. Sanz & D. Morgan in M. M. Robbins & C. Boesch Among Afr. Apes vi. 96 One could break the termite nest open with brute force, which is the technique favored by gorillas.

termite-proof adj. resistant to attack by termites.

ΚΠ

1884 Trans. Sc. Arboricultural Soc. 10 415 The ‘Stinking wood’ (Fœtidia mauritiana; nat. order, Barringtoniaceœ), used in foundations, because termite-proof.

1937 Discovery Feb. 63/1 Care must be taken to ensure that the timber work is termite-proof.

2007 Dwell Nov. 150/2 Unlike traditional wood- framed houses, rammed earth structures are fireproof and termite-proof, and produce very little post-construction waste.

Derivatives

terˈmiticide n. a pesticide used to kill termites.

ΚΠ

1913 Jrnl. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 22 ii. 383 What of the many ‘Termiticides’ now offered for sale as so many ‘infallible means to utterly exterminate all White Ants’?

1989 T. Godish Indoor Air Pollution Control 142 Termiticides are applied to the footings and soil adjacent to the foundation in such structures.

2000 N.Y. Times 14 May i. 18/2 Chlordane, an effective termiticide, was banned by the Environmental Protection Agency as a probable human carcinogen.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2017; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	termite
释义	termiten. Brit. /ˈtəːmʌɪt/, U.S. /ˈtərˌmaɪt/ Origin: A borrowing from Latin. Etymons: Latin termites, termes. Etymology: Inferred singular < post-classical Latin termites, plural of termes termes n.; perhaps compare -ite suffix¹. Compare French termite (1797), German Termite (1794 or earlier). Compare earlier termes n. 1. Any of the numerous small eusocial insects constituting the order (or infraorder) Isoptera, found in warm regions worldwide, typically feeding mainly on detritus but also highly destructive to timber. Also called white ant.Although they superficially resemble ants, termites are more closely related to cockroaches, and are now often classified as a subdivision of the order Blattodea. Colonies range in size from a few hundred to several million individuals, typically separated into three castes of workers, soldiers, and fertile adults (male and female).Recorded earliest in plural, some instances of which may instead represent the plural of termes n., which is formally identical; cf. note at that entry. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) white ant1625 wood-ant1709 termes1773 termite1781 termite ant1815 duck-ant1851 magnetic termite1935 mudguts1952 1781 H. Smeathman in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 71 160 These turret nests, built by two different species of Termites. 1789 Gentleman's Mag. Sept. 830/1 Hottentots feed on the termites, or white ants, driven out by rain. 1804 Kirby's Wonderful & Sci. Museum 2 416 The Termite is found in almost all the western regions of the African Continent, between Cape Bojador, and Cape Blanco. 1860 R. F. Burton in Jrnl. Royal Geogr. Soc. 1859 29 178 They [sc. ant-hills] are generally built by the termite under some shady tree, which prevents too rapid drying. 1880 Evening Standard 3 Apr. 4/3 The whole village is said to be infested with the termite, which in the head resembles greatly the ant... It attacks woodwork, which it eats away. a1933 J. A. Thomson Biol. for Everyman (1934) I. xiii. 279 Termites feed mainly on woody materials and on decaying vegetation. 1962 New Scientist 19 Apr. 86/2 Pheromones of various kinds are supposed to affect caste differentiation and colony structure in termites. 2009 I. Thomson Dead Yard v. 71 A leather-seated armchair visibly eaten by termites. 2. In extended use. A person who or thing which undermines, weakens, or destroys something, esp. in an unseen or underhand manner; spec. (in a political context) a subversive, a saboteur. ΘΚΠ society > authority > lack of subjection > rebelliousness > revolution > [noun] > revolutionary > one who overthrows subversor1548 walterer1572 subversive1834 subversionist1850 termite1943 1943 Standard Weekly (Sydney) 11 Feb. 1/5 The secretary of the party said ‘We can't say too much; there are termites about.’ 1951 Economist 8 Dec. 1402/2 ‘Any man who betrays the people's trust in a public office is a public enemy..’ declared the new chairman..calling on his fellow members to punish the ‘termites’ relentlessly. 1987 R. A. Thompson & L. S. Thompson Egoshell ii. C-viii. 210 Buildings..are continuously being eaten away by the ‘termites’ of smog. 1998 BBC Top Gear Mag. Sept. 19/2 The No 10 termites have eaten at Mr Prescott's radical foundations. 2013 Sunday Mail (S. Austral.) (Nexis) 13 Oct. (Suppl.) 12 Little indulgences are fine but too many are termites to a financial plan. Compounds termite ant n. now rare a termite; cf. white ant n. 1. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) white ant1625 wood-ant1709 termes1773 termite1781 termite ant1815 duck-ant1851 magnetic termite1935 mudguts1952 1815 Q. Rev. 12 Index 532 Depredations of the termite ants. 1849 Sketches Nat. Hist.: Mammalia IV. 208 The Great Ant-eater, or Ant-bear... The limbs are..furnished with huge hook-like claws well adapted for making forcible entrance into the solid dwellings of the termite ants. 1943 Jrnl. Mammalogy 24 160 Certain few animals required special diets, such as termite ants (in the mounds) for anteaters. 2004 T. Hendtlass in J. Fulcher & L. C. Jain Appl. Intelligent Syst. v. 158 Behaviour can be modelled on the way that termite ants sort eggs from faeces. termite colony n. a group of termites descended from a single pair of fertile adults (king and queen) and having a complex social structure comprising several castes; (also) a termite mound. ΚΠ 1878 Belgravia Oct. 456 In a termite colony there is but one king and queen, the royal couple being the true parents of the colony. 1915 U.S. Bureau Entomol. 94 ii. 74 If the termite colony is opened up and disorganized, the ants at once take advantage of the opportunity and carry away the termites. 1978 G. B. Williams Pest Extermination Handbk. i. 7 Termite colonies often contain more members than do many large cities. 2010 Chicago Citizen 17 Mar. 27 In addition to destroying housing structures, a termite colony can quickly decimate flooring, carpeting and wallpaper. termite heap n. = termite mound n.; cf. ant heap n. at ant n.¹ Compounds 2. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) > nest anthill1781 termitary1826 termite hill1835 termite mound1854 termitarium1855 termite heap1867 1867 E. L. Layard Birds S. Afr. 36 Suddenly it..clutches up a cowering lark or unsuspecting gerboa, and flies away with it to the nearest termite heap. 1920 Blackwood's Mag. Feb. 205/1 Several enormous termite heaps. 2012 R. Gross Being Human v. 110 A two-year old chimp, Merlin, who picked up a thin twig and..prodded with it at the surface of a termite heap. termite hill n. = termite mound n.; cf. anthill n. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) > nest anthill1781 termitary1826 termite hill1835 termite mound1854 termitarium1855 termite heap1867 1835 Penny Cycl. III. 352/2 The termite hills are here as numerous as on the banks of the Senegal. 1952 Man 52 11/1 The proportions of fat and protein in many insects are very high and in Africa a termite hill may be a valued family possession. 2010 N. Amer. Rev. June 40/3 We learned how to build mudstoves out of abandoned termite hills. termite mound n. a large, often conical mound of soil and termite faeces constructed as a nest by a colony of termites of certain tropical species. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > subclass Pterygota > [noun] > division Exopterygota or Hemimetabola > order Isoptera > member(s) of (termites) > nest anthill1781 termitary1826 termite hill1835 termite mound1854 termitarium1855 termite heap1867 1854 Kidd's Own Jrnl. 5 31/2 Termite mounds characterise the haunts of the ant-eater. 1977 ‘J. McVean’ Bloodspoor x. 96 Haston was lying by a termite mound. 2002 Trav. Afr. Winter 45/2 The ubiquitous termite mounds are often frequented by bands of Dwarf mongoose or used by pairs of Red-and-yellow barbet to perform their outrageous clockwork duets. termite nest n. a structure made and occupied by a colony of termites.Termite nests are constructed largely from termite faeces, and may be located beneath the ground, in dry or rotting wood, and in large epigeal mounds. ΚΠ 1852 C. B. Mansfield Paraguay, Brazil, & Plate (1856) Contents 79 Monkeys. Snakes. Birds. Termite Nests. 1895 Agric. Bull. Malay Penins. Jan. 80 In opening termite nests, I have often seen roots of trees and other plants..surrounded by working termites. 1971 Washington Post 12 Dec. k32 Some termite nests have air conditioning and humidity control built in by the workers. 2011 C. Sanz & D. Morgan in M. M. Robbins & C. Boesch Among Afr. Apes vi. 96 One could break the termite nest open with brute force, which is the technique favored by gorillas. termite-proof adj. resistant to attack by termites. ΚΠ 1884 Trans. Sc. Arboricultural Soc. 10 415 The ‘Stinking wood’ (Fœtidia mauritiana; nat. order, Barringtoniaceœ), used in foundations, because termite-proof. 1937 Discovery Feb. 63/1 Care must be taken to ensure that the timber work is termite-proof. 2007 Dwell Nov. 150/2 Unlike traditional wood- framed houses, rammed earth structures are fireproof and termite-proof, and produce very little post-construction waste. Derivatives terˈmiticide n. a pesticide used to kill termites. ΚΠ 1913 Jrnl. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 22 ii. 383 What of the many ‘Termiticides’ now offered for sale as so many ‘infallible means to utterly exterminate all White Ants’? 1989 T. Godish Indoor Air Pollution Control 142 Termiticides are applied to the footings and soil adjacent to the foundation in such structures. 2000 N.Y. Times 14 May i. 18/2 Chlordane, an effective termiticide, was banned by the Environmental Protection Agency as a probable human carcinogen. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2017; most recently modified version published online June 2022). termitev. Brit. /ˈtəːmʌɪt/, U.S. /ˈtərˌmaɪt/ Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: termite n. Etymology: < termite n. 1. transitive. U.S. To treat (a building, wooden structure, etc.) in order to end or prevent infestation by wood-eating termites. ΚΠ 1929 Official Jrnl. Proc. House of Representatives Louisiana: Fifth Extra Session 23 Apr. 724/2 I have termited quite a few buildings in Baton Rouge... The only thing in my termite proofing consists of injecting our oil of bichloride. 1966 Brazil (Indiana) Daily Times 22 June 1/5 They are accused of charging $376 for inspecting and termiting a small frame house. 2007 San Gabriel Valley (Calif.) Tribune (Nexis) 14 Jan. My house had just been termited and all my food and drinks were bagged up. 2. intransitive. To hunt and eat termites; spec. (of a chimpanzee) to extract termites from a nest with a stick or grass stalk. ΚΠ 1942 Auk 59 451 These birds will frequently penetrate two miles or more from salt water while ‘termiting’. 1968 Amer. Anthropologist 70 59/1 Goodall also observed that young animals try to termite out of season in what may have been a form of play activity. 1971 M. Harris Culture, Man, & Nature iv. 55 Van Lawick-Goodall witnessed many instances of infants watching intently as the adults termited. 2000 C. Jahme Beauty & Beasts x. 355 Gombe chimps have ‘termited’ with long grass and sticks for at least three generations. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < n.1781v.1929
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termiten.

Compounds

Derivatives

termitev.