1
plural lice
ˈlīs 
a
: any of various small wingless usually flattened insects (orders Anoplura and Mallophaga) parasitic on warm-blooded animals
b
: a small usually sluggish arthropod (such as a biting louse) that lives on other animals or on plants and sucks their blood or juices
c
: any of several small arthropods (such as a book louse) that are not parasitic
Synonyms
Noun
- bastard
- beast
- bleeder [British]
- blighter [chiefly British]
- boor
- bounder
- bugger
- buzzard
- cad
- chuff
- churl
- clown
- creep
- cretin
- crud [slang]
- crumb [slang]
- cur
- dirtbag [slang]
- dog
- fink
- heel
- hound
- jerk
- joker
- lout
- pill
- rat
- rat fink
- reptile
- rotter
- schmuck [slang]
- scum
- scumbag [slang]
- scuzzball [slang]
- skunk
- sleaze
- sleazebag [slang]
- sleazeball [slang]
- slime
- slimeball [slang]
- slob
- snake
- so-and-so
- sod [chiefly British]
- stinkard
- stinker
- swine
- toad
- varmint
- vermin
Examples of louse in a Sentence
Noun
a problem with head lice
Her ex-husband is a real louse.
Recent Examples on the Web
Lindsey Bever, Washington Post, 28 June 2024
The results were clear — the plague bacteria found their way into the louse’s gut.
—Ari Daniel, NPR, 3 June 2024
Chris Foran, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 31 Aug. 2017
See all Example Sentences for louse 
Noun
Many home remedies, however, are time-consuming, messy and may not kill all lice and their eggs, some experts said.
—Lindsey Bever, Washington Post, 28 June 2024
The results were clear — the plague bacteria found their way into the louse’s gut.
—Ari Daniel, NPR, 3 June 2024
Verb
Will Ferrell figure out a way to get along, their fathers (Mel Gibson, John Lithgow) show up for the holidays to louse everything up in this comedy sequel.
—Chris Foran, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 31 Aug. 2017
See all Example Sentences for louse
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'louse.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Louse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/louse. Accessed 15 Jul. 2024.
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