How to Use fruit fly in a Sentence

fruit fly

noun
Definition of fruit flynext
  • This insect — the fruit fly — sounded like just the right animal for the job.
    — Quanta Magazine, 26 July 2016
  • This is why there are 800 or so species of fruit fly on the Hawaiian islands.
    — Elizabeth Preston, Discover Magazine, 3 Sep. 2012
  • Almost every animal species has some kind of method of sleeping, from dolphins to leopards to fruit flies.
    — National Geographic, 12 Mar. 2016
  • That's the genius behind his glowing fruit fly sperm and the ability to monitor them in real time.
    — Laura Poppick, Smithsonian, 7 June 2017
  • Researchers have found that even the humble fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) uses its nose to avoid infection.
    — Guest Blogger, Discover Magazine, 7 Mar. 2013
  • Social insects, including ants, wasps and bees, have lots of these chemical markers, but non-social fruit flies don’t have any.
    — Quanta Magazine, 6 May 2014
  • This way will effectively capture adult fruit flies without chemicals, using a natural and safe method.
    — Timothy Dahl, Popular Mechanics, 28 Apr. 2017
  • The fruit flies will be drawn in, but won't be able to get out.
    — Lauren Piro, Good Housekeeping, 11 July 2018
  • The stainless steel lid keeps out fruit flies and ants and blocks odors.
    — Renee Freemon Mulvihill, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Aug. 2023
  • The fruit flies will enter but not be able to make their way out.
    — Amanda Garrity, Good Housekeeping, 12 Mar. 2023
  • Of all the household pests that might invade your home, fruit flies aren’t the worst.
    — Kaitlin Menza, House Beautiful, 20 Mar. 2020
  • Each female fruit fly can lay up to 500 eggs at a time!
    — Natalie Schumann, Country Living, 23 May 2022
  • Big league pitching coaches have the shelf life of fruit flies.
    — Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Feb. 2020
  • The restaurant has been dealing with a fruit fly outbreak around the bar.
    — Michael Mayo, sun-sentinel.com, 29 Aug. 2019
  • Hence, the brain of the humble fruit fly, with one millionth the number of neurons of our own.
    — Gregory Barber, Wired, 22 Jan. 2020
  • Bloody Mary could contain up to four maggots and 20 or more fruit fly eggs.
    — Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 4 Oct. 2019
  • One of those is called doublesex, after the fruit fly version of the gene.
    — John Timmer, Ars Technica, 17 Apr. 2020
  • In the wild, fruit flies eat yeast that’s found, for example, on rotting fruit.
    — Tim Vernimmen, Scientific American, 2 Oct. 2019
  • Along with fruit flies, gnats, and fleas, these tiny bugs can be very annoying.
    — Amy Mitchell, Country Living, 30 July 2023
  • Fiddle with the hedgehog genes in fruit flies and their larvae become spiky — hence the name.
    — Eric Boodman, STAT, 23 Oct. 2019
  • This Easter Island ooze made fruit flies, worms and yeast cells live longer.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 July 2019
  • And while getting rid of snakes may not be as easy as getting rid of fruit flies or ants, the process doesn't have to be too scary.
    — Charlyne Mattox, Country Living, 17 Dec. 2019
  • The spotted wing fruit fly is one of the world’s major crop destroyers.
    — Roni Dengler, Science | AAAS, 23 Apr. 2018
  • Their volatility makes a fruit fly’s flight path seem staid.
    — Larry Light, Fortune, 11 May 2022
  • The most recent paper the family found was in fruit flies.
    — Jason Mast, STAT, 13 May 2024
  • The team used gene editing to dial down the use of around 300 low-scoring genes found in both humans and fruit flies.
    — WIRED, 8 Aug. 2023
  • Houseflies and fruit flies are some of the most common—and most annoying—home pests.
    — Kate McGregor, House Beautiful, 13 June 2023
  • The residence was full of trash and dirty dishes, as well as clothes, and fruit flies were seen upstairs.
    — Harriet Sokmensuer, PEOPLE.com, 13 June 2018
  • Mouse droppings mold and fruit flies were among the health code violations discovered by Sacramento County inspectors at local food-serving facilities.
    — Jacqueline Pinedo, Sacramento Bee, 31 May 2024
  • Note too that in some parts of California, gleaning work might be limited by quarantines related to fruit flies or the devastating huanglongbing or citrus greening disease.
    — Jeanette Marantos, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fruit fly.' 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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