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🚗 A small vehicle 🐛 An insect larva 💣 A flying bomb
doodlebug

doodlebug

9.9
A small jet-powered flying bomb used by Germany in World War Two
  • noun
  • /ˈduːdəlˌbʌɡ/
  • Archaic
translation icon : bombardero volador
  • During World War II, the British developed strategies to counter the German doodlebugs that threatened cities with their destructive power.

Examples

  • In documentaries about World War II, historians often discuss the impact of the doodlebug on civilian populations.

  • During the 1930s and 1940s, Nazi scientists built and tested jet-powered V1s (also known as "doodlebugs" or "buzz bombs") and V2 rockets here.

    Academic text (2002)

  • The terrifying sound of a doodlebug flying overhead warned residents of imminent danger during the war.

Synonyms

V-1
vsdoodlebug
1 9.9

A German flying bomb used in World War II to attack cities

is a general term for small jet-propelled bombs used in World War II
buzz bomb
vsdoodlebug
  • Archaic
1 9.4

A small jet-powered flying bomb used by Germany in World War II to attack cities

is the general name for that type of jet-propelled flying bomb
flying bomb
vsdoodlebug
  • Archaic
1 7.9

A small flying machine with wings that carries a bomb to a target

is the more specific World War II example rather than the general class
robot bomb
vsdoodlebug
  • Specialized
7.8

A missile with wings and a jet engine that carries explosives to a target without a person on board

is the historical World War II term for a similar early weapon

Surface Forms

doodlebug singular
doodlebugs plural

Morphology

doodlebug = doodle + bug (opaque) = doodle + bug

The WW2 nickname for the V-1 flying bomb is a historical/metaphorical label; knowing 'doodle' and 'bug' does not enable a learner to deduce 'jet-propelled flying bomb'.

Etymology

Doodlebug was the popular nickname for the V-1 flying bomb because people heard its loud, buzzing engine and thought of a flying 'bug'; the name mixes doodle ('a silly or aimless movement') and bug ('insect'). A helpful way to remember is that the missile sounded and moved like a dangerous buzzing 'bug', so people called that small jet-propelled bomb a 'doodlebug'.