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hornet |
3 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Hornet \Hor"net\, n. [AS. hyrnet; akin to OHG. hornaz hornuz G. horniss; perh. akin to E. horn, and named from the sound it makes as if blowing the horn; but more prob. akin to D. horzel, Lith. szirszone L. crabo.] (Zo["o]l.) A large strong wasp. The European species ({Vespa crabro}) is of a dark brown and yellow color. It is very pugnacious, and its sting is very severe. Its nest is constructed of a paperlike material, and the layers of comb are hung together by columns. The American white-faced hornet ({V. maculata}) is larger and has similar habits. {Hornet fly} (Zo["o]l.), any dipterous insect of the genus {Asilus}, and allied genera, of which there are numerous species. They are large and fierce flies which capture bees and other insects, often larger than themselves, and suck their blood. Called also {hawk fly}, {robber fly}. {To stir up a hornet's nest}, to provoke the attack of a swarm of spiteful enemies or spirited critics. [Colloq.] From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: hornet n : large stinging paper wasp From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]: Hornet Heb. tsir'ah, "stinging", (Ex. 23:28; Deut. 7:20; Josh. 24:12). The word is used in these passages as referring to some means by which the Canaanites were to be driven out from before the Israelites. Some have supposed that the word is used in a metaphorical sense as the symbol of some panic which would seize the people as a "terror of God" (Gen. 35:5), the consternation with which God would inspire the Canaanites. In Palestine there are four species of hornets, differing from our hornets, being larger in size, and they are very abundant. They "attack human beings in a very furious manner." "The furious attack of a swarm of hornets drives cattle and horses to madness, and has even caused the death of the animals."
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