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gadfly |
Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Financial, Wikipedia, Hutchinson | 0.06 sec. |
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gadfly, name for various biting flies, especially those that attack livestock, e.g., the botfly botfly, common name for several families of hairy flies whose larvae live as parasites within the bodies of mammals. The horse botfly secretes an irritating substance that is used to attach its eggs to the body hairs of a horse, mule, or donkey. ..... Click the link for more information. and the horsefly horsefly, common name for the large hairy flies of the family Tabanidae. Male horseflies feed on pollen and nectar, but the females suck blood as well and are common pests of animals and sometimes of humans. The bites of many species are very painful. ..... Click the link for more information. . gadfly any of various large dipterous flies, esp the horsefly, that annoy livestock by sucking their blood How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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| ? Mentioned in | ? References in classic literature | |
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Passion for power: the wicked gadfly which is mounted on the vainest peoples; the scorner of all uncertain virtue; which rideth on every horse and on every pride. They fled to the other end of the court like a herd of cattle maddened by the gadfly in early summer when the days are at their longest. To see Porthos hungry, to see Mousqueton without gold lace, imprisoned, perhaps; to see Pierrefonds, Bracieux, razed to the very stones, dishonored even to the timber, - these were so many poignant griefs for D'Artagnan, and every time that one of these griefs struck him, he bounded like a horse at the sting of a gadfly beneath the vaults of foliage where he has sought shady shelter from the burning sun. |
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