Borer

//ˈboːɹɐ// name, noun, slang

name, noun, slang ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Noun

1
A tool used for drilling.
2
any of various insects or larvae or mollusks that bore into wood wordnet
3
A knife fit for a stabbing. Multicultural-London-English, slang
4
a drill for penetrating rock wordnet
5
A person who bores or drills; a person employed to drill bore holes.

Show 5 more definitions

6
A tedious person, who bores others; a bore.
"The boree has been heard from frequently since the Renaissance, and his sentiments have undergone little change. The borer hasn't had much to say for himself."
7
An insect or insect larva that bores into wood.
8
One of the many types of mollusc that bore into soft rock.
9
A cyclostome, such as a hagfish, which bores into injured, dead, or decaying sea creatures to feed on their flesh.
10
The penetrating root of a parasitic plant.

Proper Noun

1
A surname.

Synonyms

auger bassy bit bore bit bore bit cheffer

Example

"The emerald ash borer has killed more than a hundred million ash trees across North America."

Etymology

From bore + -er.

Related phrases

African sugarcane borer Asian corn borer Dahlberg Borer Newcomer syndrome European corn borer apple borer ash borer banded hickory borer borer bomb boxhole borer bud borer bumelia borer cork borer

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.