Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
🌵 A sharp spine 🐝 A stinger
aculeus

aculeus

9.9
A sharp, pointed sting that a bee or wasp uses to defend itself
  • noun
  • /əˈkuːliəs/
  • Specialized
translation icon : aculeo
  • The bee extended its aculeus in defense when threatened by the intruder.

Examples

  • Some wasps have a potent aculeus capable of delivering a painful sting.

  • The microscope revealed the sharp aculeus at the tip of the insect's abdomen.

  • The aculeus of the bee can cause a painful sting.

  • Some insects have a sharp aculeus for defense.

  • Some wasps have a potent aculeus capable of delivering a painful sting.

  • The bee extended its aculeus in defense when threatened by the intruder.

  • The microscope revealed the sharp aculeus at the tip of the insect's abdomen.

Synonyms

aculeated feature
vsaculeus
  • Specialized
9.9

A sharp point or sting on animals and plants used to protect them

is specific to the sting of certain insects rather than all such structures

Antonyms

blunt
109 1.0

An object with a dull edge or tip that does not cut well

How Sharp

aculeus
  • Specialized
9.9
point
550 1.0
to prickle
4 4.0
dull
17 1.0

Surface Forms

aculeus singular
aculei plural

Etymology

The word aculeus comes from the Latin acus meaning 'needle' and is related to the English word acute, which means 'sharp'. So an aculeus is like a little needle or sting on a bee or wasp, and that 'needle' image explains why it can give a painful sting.