noun ·2 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A vigil beside a dying person
2. 2
   bores through wood making a ticking sound popularly thought to presage death wordnet
3. 3
   One who guards a condemned person before execution.
4. 4
   minute wingless psocopterous insects injurious to books and papers wordnet
5. 5
   A deathwatch beetle.

Synonyms

All synonyms

agonybook lousebooklousebooklouseburial servicedeath agonies

Etymology

From death + watch.

Related phrases

deathwatch beetle

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