carpet beetle
1
4.8
- noun
- /ˈkɑːrpɪt ˈbiːtəl/
:
escarabajo de la alfombra
- To prevent carpet beetles from ruining your clothes, keep fabrics stored in airtight containers.
Examples
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Carpet beetles, the scourge of my knitterly existence.
Blog text (16) -
Right now I'm jealous of people who have houses not infested with carpet beetles; who come home at a decent hour from work and have quality playtime with their child before bedtime; who have ironclad routines that work perfectly; who never feel guilt or doubt about their parenting; who feel like rock stars at work and home.
Blog text (13) -
The carpet beetle larvae are damaging my favorite wool sweater.
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After noticing holes in the curtains, I realized I had a carpet beetle infestation in my home.
Synonyms
A small insect whose young eat wool carpets and clothes
A small black insect that eats household fabrics and stored food
A small beetle with black, red and white marks that eats carpets and other fabric
A small beetle with black, red, and white markings that eats natural fibres like wool and silk
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning — a beetle associated with carpets (i.e., one that is found in or damages carpets) — is directly and transparently derived from combining 'carpet' (floor fabric) with 'beetle' (an insect). This noun+noun composition indicating habitat or association is common cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will very likely infer the general meaning even if they may not deduce the specific pest/larval details.
Etymology
Carpet beetle gets its name from tiny insects whose young often eat holes in household rugs and wool clothes. People found them on the carpet and called the little beetle a carpet beetle, so today the name means a 'small beetle that eats fabrics'.