English dictionary

deathwatch

/'d/E//T/,w/A//tS/

Definitions, examples, synonyms and antonyms from WordNet 3.0.

noun

minute wingless psocopterous insects injurious to books and papers

noun.animal

Synonyms book louse booklouse liposcelis divinatorius

Source: WordNet 3.0
bores through wood making a ticking sound popularly thought to presage death

noun.animal

Synonyms deathwatch beetle xestobium rufovillosum

Source: WordNet 3.0
A small beetle (<i>Anobium tessellatum</i> and other allied species). By forcibly striking its head against woodwork it makes a ticking sound, which is a call of the sexes to each other, but has been imagined by superstitious people to presage death.

noun

Source: webster1913