cankerwormn.
/ˈkaŋkəwəːm/, U.S. /ˈkæŋkərˌwərm/ 1. A caterpillar that attacks buds and leaves; spec. (U.S.) the larva of either of two similar geometrid moths, Alsophila pometaria (more fully fall cankerworm), and Paleacrita vernata (more fully spring cankerworm). Cf. canker n. 3. Also in figurative context.
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the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > eggs or young > [noun] > young or development of young > larva
niteOE
wormOE
grubc1420
canker1440
caterpillarc1440
cankerworm1530
mad1573
bug1594
blote1657
vermicle1657
hexapod1668
grub-worm1752
truffle-worm1753
larva1768
larve1822
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > eggs or young > [noun] > young or development of young > larva > defined by parasitism or feeding > that destroys or eats plants
canker1440
rukel?1440
cankerworm1530
canker-blossom1600
whirl-worm1643
whirl1658
bud-worm1850
stem borer1921
the world > animals > invertebrates > phylum Arthropoda > class Insecta > Heterocera > [noun] > family Geometridae > geometra brumata (winter-moth) > larva
cankerworm1841
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement f. xxiiv Cancker worme, uers de chancre [read uer de chancre].
1611 Bible (King James) Joel i. 4 That which the locust hath left, hath the canker-worme eaten. View more context for this quotation
1778 Pract. Gardener 91 Clip off the extremities of the shoots of gooseberries, which will in a great measure prevent or kill the cankerworm.
1820 W. Scott Monastery I. v. 162 Pestilential heresy..as a canker-worm in the rose-garland of the Spouse.
1841 R. W. Emerson Lect. on Times in Wks. (1906) II. 260 The canker-worms have crawled to the topmost bough of the wild elm.
1863 H. W. Longfellow Birds of Killingworth 196 From the trees spun down the canker~worms upon the passers-by.
1944 R. Matheson Entomol. for Introd. Courses xiv. 275 The eggs may serve to carry the species over the winter, as in the tent-caterpillars, gipsy moth, fall cankerworm, and others.
1996 E. Tenner Why Things bite Back vi. 124 They overwhelm native tree pests, including cankerworms and tent caterpillars, by outfeeding them.
2. figurative. A highly malignant and corrupting influence that spreads and consumes, in the manner of a cankerworm.
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the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > [noun] > a harmful thing or person > thing > slow or stealthy
apostemec1380
cankera1475
cankerworm1580
cancer1597
sap1748
tapeworm1824
1580 G. Gaske in Paradyse Daintie Deuises (ed. 3) f. 49v Unto the minde a canker worme of care.
1641 J. Milton Reason Church-govt. 20 Must tradition..be the perpetuall canker-worme to eat out Gods Commandements?
?1734 G. Philips Lex Parliamentaria (ed. 2) 88 Sir Francis Mitchell..another Canker-worm of the Common-wealth..was discover'd and degraded from his Knighthood.
1796 Agatha III. 142 The dread that a secret grief might rankle in your heart would prove a canker-worm to mine.
1858 J. A. Froude Hist. Eng. (ed. 2) III. xiii. 148 Lies..are cankerworms, and spoil all causes, good or bad.
1874 J. Lawrence Angel Voices from Spirit World 385 The canker-worm of guilt is ever gnawing at my vitals, rendering even spirit-life a burthen.
1909 H. T. M. Bell Poems 31 When happiness Is ours, a hidden canker-worm reveals Its hateful presence, and too soon there comes Something to vex the spirit.
1940 Daily Gleaner (Kingston, Jamaica) 3 July 8/2 Distrust, which has been the cankerworm in island life.
2007 Vanguard (Nigeria) (Nexis) 25 Mar. Another cankerworm affecting our educational standard is misappropriation of funds.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2008; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1530