pl.n. 1. Various small animals, such as rats or cockroaches, that are destructive, annoying, or injurious to health. 2. Animals that prey on farm animals or game or that destroy crops. 3. People considered loathsome or repulsive. [Middle English, from Old French, from Vulgar Latin *vermīnum, from Latin vermis, worm; see wer-2 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.