worm

Meaning

Noun

1. A generally tubular invertebrate of the annelid phylum; an earthworm.
2. More loosely, any of various tubular invertebrates resembling annelids but not closely related to them, such as velvet worms, acorn worms, flatworms, or roundworms.
3. (archaic, poetic) Any creeping or crawling animal, such as a snake, snail, or caterpillar.
4. (archaic) A type of wingless "dragon", especially a gigantic sea serpent or any kind of dragon.
5. (archaic) A type of wingless "dragon", especially a gigantic sea serpent or any kind of dragon.
6. A contemptible or devious being.
7. A self-replicating program that propagates through a network, differing from a virus in usually lacking any destructive effects.
8. A graphical representation of the total runs scored across a number of overs.
9. Anything helical, especially the thread of a screw.
10. Anything helical, especially the thread of a screw.
11. Anything helical, especially the thread of a screw.
12. Anything helical, especially the thread of a screw.
13. Anything helical, especially the thread of a screw.
14. Anything helical, especially the thread of a screw.
15. (informal, poetic) A maggot.
16. (figuratively) An internal tormentor; something that gnaws or afflicts one’s mind with remorse.
17. A strip of linked tiles sharing parallel edges in a tiling.
18. The lytta.
19. A dance, or dance move, in which the dancer lies on the floor and undulates the body horizontally thereby moving forwards.

Verb

1. (transitive) To make (one's way) with a crawling motion.
2. (intransitive) To move with one's body dragging the ground.
3. (figuratively, intransitive) To work one's way by artful or devious means.
4. (figuratively, transitive) To work (one's way or oneself) (into) gradually or slowly; to insinuate.
5. (often) To effect, remove, drive, draw, or the like, by slow and secret means.
6. (figuratively, transitive) To drag out of, to get information that someone is reluctant or unwilling to give (through artful or devious means or by pleading or asking repeatedly).
7. (transitive) To fill in the contlines of (a rope) before parcelling and serving.
8. (transitive) To deworm (an animal).
9. (transitive) To cut the worm, or lytta, from under the tongue of (a dog, etc.) for the purpose of checking a disposition to gnaw, and formerly supposed to guard against canine madness.
10. (transitive) To clean by means of a worm; to draw a wad or cartridge from, as a firearm.

Synonyms

earthworm

maggot

insect

caterpillar

🐛

creep

snake

🐍

larva

bug

🐛

wrestle

wriggle

louse

squirm

crawl

twist

grub

helminth

leech

spiral

writhe

dirt ball

hookworm

rain-worm

elicit

intestinal worm

slither

beetle

🪲

proliferate

pull

renege on

reprint

retrieve

roundworm

screw

serpent

slip into

sneak

spin

stinker

supersede

take back

tapeworm

threadworm

vermin

volute

vortex

weevil

wiggler

wind

withdraw

worm gear

Translations

Wurm

🪱

gusano

🪱

ver

🪱

verme

🪱

worm

🪱

verme

🪱

σκουλήκι

vermis

🪱

lombriz

🪱

cuc

🪱

دودة

🪱

kurt

🐺

wurm

pier

🪱

Pronounced as (IPA)

/wɜːm/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: worm

Inherited from Old English: wyrm

Cognate with Dutch: worm

Cognate with Western Frisian: wjirm

Cognate with German: Wurm

Cognate with Swedish: orm

Cognate with Norwegian Nynorsk: orm

Cognate with Danish: orm

Cognate with Yiddish: וואָרעם

Cognate with Latin: vermis

Cognate with Lithuanian: var̃mas

Cognate with Albanian: rrime

Cognate with Ancient Greek: ῥόμος

In summary

From Middle English worm, werm, wurm, wirm, from Old English wyrm (“worm, snake”), from Proto-Germanic *wurmiz, from Proto-Indo-European *wr̥mis, possibly from *wer- (“to turn”). Doublet of vermin and wyrm, the latter of which is a fairly recent borrowing directly from the Old English.
(computing): First computer usage by John Brunner in his 1975 book The Shockwave Rider.
Cognates
Germanic cognates include Dutch worm, West Frisian wjirm, German Wurm, Swedish orm (“snake”), Norwegian Nynorsk orm (“earthworm or snake”), Danish orm and Yiddish וואָרעם (vorem).
Indo-European cognates include Latin vermis (“worm”), Lithuanian var̃mas (“insect, midge”), Albanian rrime (“rainworm”), Ancient Greek ῥόμος (rhómos, “woodworm”).