What is the origin of 'sleep tight'?
Read moreOne of the mysteries of the English language finally explained.
nounPlural botflies
A stout hairy-bodied fly with larvae that are internal parasites of mammals.
a fly of the warble fly family (Oestridae).
a fly whose larvae (bots) develop within the guts of horses (Gasterophilus and other genera, family Gasterophilidae).
- ‘Other than biting and acting as vectors of disease, flies may affect humans by causing myiasis, infestation of the skin or a body orifice with fly larvae of Diptera species, which include the human botfly.’
- ‘When he moved to evolution, he brought with him a gift to see the mathematical underpinnings of things, whether they are bridges or botflies.’
- ‘Botfly larvae hatched less than 24 hours prior to recording.’
- ‘This, apparently, is the botfly larvae moving around and snacking on my flesh.’
- ‘I've had tons of leeches, foot rot, botflies, and a bite from a coral snake that nearly killed me.’
- ‘Dermatobia hominis, the human botfly, is distributed widely throughout Central and South America.’
- ‘The botfly is found in the forests of Mexico, Central America, and South America.’
- ‘He is several hundred miles away, ambassadoring to a backwoods strip of nothing which as far as I am concerned deserves no more of Shakallor's attention than a botfly.’
- ‘I have found that the botfly will not lay its eggs in the oil.’
- ‘The plain's long sightlines give the caribou a jump on approaching predators, and the winds off the Beaufort Sea bring temporary relief from millions of swarming mosquitoes and botflies.’
