# hornet

Pronunciation: US say "HOR-nit" /ˈhɔɹ.nɪt/; UK say "HAW-nit" /ˈhɔː.nɪt/

## Noun

1. A large wasp belonging to the genus Vespa, capable of inflicting a painful, serious sting.
   - Simple: A large kind of wasp that can give a painful, serious sting.
   - _A hornet built its nest under the eaves of the old barn._
   - _Several hornets swarmed out when the children disturbed the branch._
2. Someone who continually harasses others through petty attacks.
   - Simple: A person who keeps bothering others with small but constant attacks.
   - _She became the office hornet, hounding colleagues over trivial errors._
   - _Critics turned into hornets the moment his book appeared, picking at every sentence._

## Origin

From Middle English "hernet" and Old English "hyrnetu," going back to Proto-Germanic (compare German "Hornisse") and ultimately to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "the one with horns," a reference to the insect's antennae. It is related to the root for "horn," with cognates such as Latin "crābrō" (hornet) and Lithuanian "širšė" (wasp).

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/hornet (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).