: any of numerous pale-colored soft-bodied social insects (order Isoptera) that live in colonies consisting usually of winged sexual forms, wingless sterile workers, and soldiers, feed on wood, and include some which are very destructive to wooden structures and trees
called also white ant
Examples of termite in a Sentence
The house has a lot of termite damage.
Recent Examples on the Web
Additionally, its digestive system is fine-tuned to extract nutrients from termites, which are rich in protein but low in fat.
—
Scott Travers, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025
Carbon also goes into building bodies; some termites use their lignin-rich feces to build nests and mounds.
—Katarina Zimmer, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Feb. 2025
Sloth bears also often have white patches on their chests, in the shape of a Y, O or U, the zoo said, and have thick hair that protects them from termite bites.
—Kerry Breen, CBS News, 14 Feb. 2025
Chimpanzees use sticks to catch termites and stones to crack nuts open.
—Leticia Fanucchi, The Conversation, 10 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for termite
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Scott Travers, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025
Carbon also goes into building bodies; some termites use their lignin-rich feces to build nests and mounds.
—Katarina Zimmer, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Feb. 2025
Sloth bears also often have white patches on their chests, in the shape of a Y, O or U, the zoo said, and have thick hair that protects them from termite bites.
—Kerry Breen, CBS News, 14 Feb. 2025
Chimpanzees use sticks to catch termites and stones to crack nuts open.
—Leticia Fanucchi, The Conversation, 10 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for termite
Cite this Entry
“Termite.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/termite. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
termite
noun
ter·mite
ˈtər-ˌmīt 
: any of a group of pale-colored soft-bodied social insects that feed on wood, live in colonies consisting of winged sexual forms, wingless sterile workers, and often soldiers, and that include some very destructive to wooden structures and trees
called also white ant
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