fruit fly

noun

: any of various small dipteran flies (such as a drosophila) whose larvae feed on fruit or decaying vegetable matter

Examples of fruit fly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Coco's West Italian Restaurant Score = 64 Date of inspection: June 24 Examples of violations: Infestation of fruit flies in the kitchen; spatula is stored in a pan of water; kitchen ceiling and ceiling vent are dirty and dusty; the inside of the ice machine was dirty. Mackensy Lunsford, The Tennessean, 13 July 2025 Officials detected the infestation when eight fruit flies were found in a network of traps regularly monitored throughout the county. Emilie Takahashi, Oc Register, 11 July 2025 Backyard cherries often have bugs in them—cherry fruit fly larvae, to be exact. Amy Panos, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 July 2025 The team first made these findings in fruit flies, but the discovery also translated to human cells that modeled tau build-up. New Atlas, 30 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for fruit fly

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1753, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of fruit fly was circa 1753

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Fruit fly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fruit%20fly. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

fruit fly

noun
: any of various small two-winged flies whose larvae feed on fruit or decaying vegetable matter

Medical Definition

fruit fly

noun
: any of various small dipteran flies (as a drosophila) whose larvae feed on fruit or decaying vegetable matter

More from Merriam-Webster on fruit fly

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