worm

noun · verb

Simple meaning

More loosely, any of different tubular invertebrates resembling annelids but not closely related to them, such as velvet worms, acorn worms, flatworms.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

wurm

US device voice

IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈwɝm

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

More loosely, any of various tubular invertebrates resembling annelids but not closely related to them, such as velvet worms, acorn worms, flatworms, or roundworms.
A generally tubular invertebrate of the annelid phylum; an earthworm.
Screw thread on a gear with the teeth of a worm wheel or rack
computing
A self-replicating program that propagates through a network, differing from a virus in usually lacking any destructive effects.
A contemptible or devious being.
Anything helical, especially the thread of a screw.

verb

intransitive
To move with one's body dragging the ground.
transitivefigurativelyin "worm out of"
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).
intransitivefiguratively
To work one's way by artful or devious means.
transitivefiguratively
To work (one's way or oneself) (into) gradually or slowly; to insinuate.
transitive
To deworm (an animal).
transitive
To clean by means of a worm; to draw a wad or cartridge from, as a firearm.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty: B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
Frequency: Moderately Common
Typical Use: General and technical use

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: More loosely, any of various tubular invertebrates resembling annelids but not closely related to them, such as velvet worms, acorn worms, flatworms, or roundworms.

Used this way, worm is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone: Neutral
Formality: Neutral
Intensity: Not strongly marked
How common: Moderately common
Connotation: Matter-of-fact
Usage feel: Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use worm

“Worms take advantage of automatic file sending and receiving features found on many computers.”noun

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Screw / anything

worm gearworm wheelsilk worm

Other combinations

guinea wormarmy wormadult wormsmall wormround worm

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

worm fishnounCompound term
Poorly known family of small tropical shallow-water fishes related to gobies.
worm gearnounCompound term
Gear consisting of a shaft with screw thread (the worm) that meshes with a toothed wheel (the worm wheel).
worm lizardnounCompound term
A lizard of the genus Amphisbaena.
worm salamandernounCompound term
Any of several small slim salamanders of the Pacific coast of the United States.
worm snakenounCompound term
Wormlike burrowing snake of warm regions having vestigial eyes.
worm wheelnounCompound term
Gear with the thread of a worm.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.