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Definition of "tapeworm" [tape•worm]

  • Any of various ribbonlike, often very long flatworms of the class Cestoda, that lack an alimentary canal and are parasitic in the intestines of vertebrates, including humans. (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 "tapeworm" in a sentence
  • "An STD or tapeworm is something that exists independantly of any particular person – a fetus is not."
  • "This, however, does not impel me to an admiration of those purposes or methods, if the tapeworm is a manifestation of them."
  • "The tapeworm is a long (6m or 20 ft.), soft-bodied, legless invertebrate with bilateral symmetry."