- cochineal insect
- noun Date: 1801 a small red cactus-feeding scale insect (Dactylopius coccus) the females of which are the source of cochineal
New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
cochineal insect
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cochineal insect — n a small bright red cactus feeding scale insect (Dactylopius coccus) the females of which are the source of cochineal … Medical dictionary
cochineal insect — n. any of a family (Dactylopiidae) of scale insects, esp. one (Dactylopius coccus) that has a brilliant red body fluid, feeds on certain cactuses, is found chiefly in Mexico, and was formerly much used as a source of cochineal … English World dictionary
cochineal insect — noun Mexican red scale insect that feeds on cacti; the source of a red dye • Syn: ↑cochineal, ↑Dactylopius coccus • Hypernyms: ↑scale insect • Member Holonyms: ↑Dactylopius, ↑genus Dactylopius * * … Useful english dictionary
cochineal insect — any of various small red scale insects of the family Dactylopiidae, related to the mealybugs and characterized by an oval segmented body with white waxy plates and short legs and antennae: the source of cochineal. [1795 1805] * * * … Universalium
cochineal insect — coch′ineal in sect n. ent any of various scale insects, of the family Dactylopiidae, that feed on cactus and have a bright red body fluid used as a dye • Etymology: 1795–1805 … From formal English to slang
Cochineal — Female (left) and male (right) Cochineals. Scientific classification Domain: Eukaryota … Wikipedia
Cochineal fig — Coch i*neal fig, (Bot.) A plant of Central and Southern America, of the Cactus family, extensively cultivated for the sake of the cochineal insect, which lives on it. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
cochineal — /koch euh neel , koh cheuh , koch euh neel , koh cheuh /, n. a red dye prepared from the dried bodies of the females of the cochineal insect, Dactylopius coccus, which lives on cactuses of Mexico, Central America, and other warm regions. [1575… … Universalium
cochineal — [16] Cochineal ‘red dye’ comes via French cochenille from Old Spanish cochinilla, a term applied both to the dye and to the small insect related to the mealybugs, from whose dried body it is made. It is generally thought to be a derivative of… … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins
cochineal — [ˌkɒtʃɪ ni:l, kɒtʃɪni:l] noun 1》 a scarlet dye used for colouring food, made from the crushed dried bodies of a female scale insect. 2》 (cochineal insect) the scale insect that is used for cochineal, native to Mexico and formerly widely… … English new terms dictionary
