mouthpart
noun
mouth·part
| \ ˈmau̇th-ˌpärt
\
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Definition of mouthpart
: a structure or appendage near the mouth (as of an insect) especially when adapted for use in gathering or eating food
Examples of mouthpart in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Known as an assassin bug, Sycanus uses its mouthpart to stab its insect prey, including the fire caterpillar, one of the most important pests of oil palm trees. — Dyna Rochmyaningsih, Science | AAAS, "Courting controversy, scientists team with industry to tackle one of the world’s most destructive crops," 11 July 2019 But the tick that covertly slid its pointy barbed mouthparts into an unlucky 66-year-old Yonkers resident was something new. — Maryn Mckenna, WIRED, "The Terrifying Unknowns of an Exotic Invasive Tick," 28 June 2019 Their mouthparts bruise then suck sap from the foliage of flowering plants, trees, evergreens, roses and shrubs, vegetables and houseplants. — Betty Cahill, The Denver Post, "How to get bad insects out of your garden, from Japanese beetles to spider mites," 24 June 2019 Lots of flies pose a mild nuisance — like the fruit fly on the left — but the knife-like mouthparts of horse flies make their bites especially painful, according to the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture. — Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, "QUIZ: Can You Identify These Dangerous Summer Plants and Bugs?," 3 Aug. 2018 Scales Adult females look like hard or soft bumps on stems, leaves, or fruit; males are minute flying insects and larvae are tiny, soft, crawling insects with threadlike mouthparts. — The Editors, Good Housekeeping, "The 10 Most Destructive Garden Insects and How to Get Rid of Them," 10 July 2018 Researchers studied the shrimps’ key anatomical features, like the legs, mouthparts and shells, according to a statement by ZooKeys publisher Pensoft. — Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, "Introducing a Hairy-Footed Shrimp Named After Bilbo Baggins," 13 June 2018 Scales Adult females look like hard or soft bumps on stems, leaves, or fruit, males are minute flying insects, and larvae are tiny, soft, crawling insects with threadlike mouthparts. — The Editors Of Organic Life, Good Housekeeping, "10 Most Destructive Garden Insects And How To Get Rid Of Them," 3 June 2016 Technically speaking, bugs are not synonymous with insects but are a subset of them: those which possess mouthparts that pierce and suck (as opposed to, say, caterpillars and termites, whose mouths are built, like ours, to chew). — Steven Strogatz, The New Yorker, "When Twenty-Six Thousand Stinkbugs Invade Your Home," 8 Aug. 2011These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mouthpart.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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