Vermin

Vermin

Vermin is a term applied to various animal species regarded as pests or nuisances and especially to those associated with the carrying of disease. Since the term is defined in relation to human activities, which species are included will vary from area to area and even person to person. The term itself derives from the Latin vermis, meaning worm, and originally had reference to the vermiform larvae of certain insects, many of which infest foodstuffs. [cite web| title = entry for vermin | work = Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary | publisher =Britannica Publishing | url = http://www.britannica.com/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=vermin&query=vermin | accessmonthday = December 13 |accessyear=2006] Disease-carrying rodents and insects are the usual case, but the term is also applied to larger animals, on the basis that they exist out of balance with a desired environment, consuming excessive resources. Pigeons, which have been widely introduced in urban environments, may be considered vermin, or, pejoratively, "flying rats." Some varieties of snake are also referred to as vermin from time to time.

The term is also used as an extremely pejorative characterization of a particular class or group of people as inferior and subhuman, and often considered social parasites. Application of the term can be wide, having been applied over the centuries in different languages, to various groups, and its use is usually based on a perception that the target group's views are "disease-like," or that such groups exist out of sociological balance with the common society.

Spelling distinction

"Varmint" (occasionally "varmit") is an American-English colloquialism. The term describes farm pests which raid farms as opposed to infest farms: mainly predators such as foxes and coyotes, sometimes even wolves; but also (to a lesser degree) herbivores and burrowing animals which directly damage crops and land. Although this is not a prevalent term in Standard Written English, it is a common descriptor for certain kinds of weapons and pest control situations (e.g., "varmint guns", "varmint hunting", "pesky varmint").

Deterioration of balance

Introduced species can develop into vermin in the regions where they were introduced if they find favourable living conditions, and if they face few or no natural enemies there. In such cases, humans often choose to fill the role of the predator to limit the danger to the environment. A prime example of vermin is goats on the Galápagos Islands. Rats, mice, and cockroaches are common urban and suburban vermin.

See also

* Satoyama

References


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Synonyms:
(of small size) / , , , ,


Look at other dictionaries:

  • Vermin — Ver min, n. sing. & pl.; used chiefly as plural. [OE. vermine, F. vermine, from L. vermis a worm; cf. LL. vermen a worm, L. verminosus full of worms. See {Vermicular}, {Worm}.] 1. An animal, in general. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] Wherein were all… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • vermin — c.1300, noxious animals, from Anglo Fr. and O.Fr. vermin, from V.L. *verminum vermin, possibly including bothersome insects, collective noun formed from L. vermis worm (see WORM (Cf. worm)). Extended to low, obnoxious people by 1560s …   Etymology dictionary

  • Vermin — Album par Old Man s Child Sortie 14 octobre 2005 Enregistrement janvier fevrier 2005 Durée 37:52 Genre Black metal symphonique Producteur …   Wikipédia en Français

  • vermin — is normally treated as a plural in both its meanings (‘mammals and birds that are harmful to other life’ and ‘vile or despicable people’), although it can refer to a single person or animal: • Suddenly the older of the two little girls said, ‘Why …   Modern English usage

  • vermin — [vʉr′mən] n. pl. vermin [ME < OFr vermine < L vermis, a WORM] 1. [pl.] various insects, bugs, or small animals regarded as pests because destructive, disease carrying, etc., as flies, lice, rats, or weasels 2. [pl.] Brit. birds or animals… …   English World dictionary

  • vermin — ► NOUN (treated as pl. ) 1) wild mammals and birds which are harmful to crops, farm animals, or game, or which carry disease. 2) parasitic worms or insects. 3) very unpleasant and destructive people. DERIVATIVES verminous adjective. ORIGIN Old… …   English terms dictionary

  • vermin — n. 1) to exterminate vermin 2) (misc.) infested with vermin * * * [ vɜːmɪn] (misc.) infested with vermin to exterminate vermin …   Combinatory dictionary

  • vermin —    ‘Thou vermin!’ says a man to another in The Alchemist, by Ben Jonson. This seems to have been something of a fashionable insult at the end of the sixteenth and beginning of the seventeenth century. But as with ‘you rat’, which is a similar… …   A dictionary of epithets and terms of address

  • vermin — /verr min/, n., pl. vermin. 1. noxious, objectionable, or disgusting animals collectively, esp. those of small size that appear commonly and are difficult to control, as flies, lice, bedbugs, cockroaches, mice, and rats. 2. an objectionable or… …   Universalium

  • vermin — noun VERB + VERMIN ▪ consider sth, regard sth as ▪ Farmers regard foxes as vermin. ▪ attract ▪ control, deal with, shoot …   Collocations dictionary

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