Cankerworm
noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Either of two caterpillars, the larvae of geometrid moths, that are destructive to fruit, buds and leaves.
- 2 green caterpillar of a geometrid moth; pest of various fruit and shade trees wordnet
- 3 A corrupting or destructive force. figuratively
"O cursed Eld the cankerworme of writs, / How may these rimes, so rude as doth appeare, / Hope to endure, sith workes of heauenly wits / Are quite deuourd, and brought to nought by little bits?"
Example
More examples"O cursed Eld the cankerworme of writs, / How may these rimes, so rude as doth appeare, / Hope to endure, sith workes of heauenly wits / Are quite deuourd, and brought to nought by little bits?"
Etymology
From canker + worm.
Related phrases
More for "cankerworm"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.