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Definition of "maggot" []

  • The legless, soft-bodied, wormlike larva of any of various flies of the order Diptera, often found in decaying matter. (noun)
  • Slang A despicable person. (noun)
  • An extravagant notion; a whim. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "maggot" in a sentence
  • "A rose by any other name might smell as sweet, but were it called a maggot, a schist or a cloaca, we would think of it quite differently."
  • "The larvae preferentially consume dead tissue (steering clear of live), they excrete an antibacterial agent, and they stimulate wound healing -- all factors that could be linked to the lower occurrence of infection in maggot-treated wounds."
  • "He said that he had not been "maggot" - slang for getting out of it - for almost two weeks, so was going to make the most of it."