gnat
See also: Gnat
English
Etymology
From Middle English gnat, from Old English gnætt (“gnat; midge; mosquito”), from Proto-Germanic *gnattaz, *gnattuz (“gnat”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰneHdʰn-, *gʰneHd- (“to gnaw; scratch”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰen- (“to gnaw; bite; scratch; grind”). Cognate with Low German Gnatte (“gnat”), dialectal Swedish gnatt (“mote; particle; atom”), German Gnatz (“scabs; rash; scabies; stinginess”). Related also gnit and gnaw.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /næt/
- Rhymes: -æt
Noun
gnat (plural gnats)
- Any small insect of the order Diptera, specifically within the suborder Nematocera.
Related terms
Translations
any small insect of the order Diptera
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Middle English
Etymology
From Old English gnætt, from Proto-Germanic *gnattaz.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡnat/, /ɡnɛt/
References
- “gnat (n.)” in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-10-17.
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