Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun One that is considered undesirable, obnoxious, or troublesome.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A pestering animal such as one that kills or harasses a farmer's livestock.
  • noun A person who is obnoxious or makes trouble.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun an irritating or obnoxious person
  • noun any usually predatory wild animal considered undesirable; e.g., coyote

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Variant of vermin.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

ca 1530-1540s From vermin derived from Latin vermis meaning "worm", a synonym usually for vermin.

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Examples

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  • Public School Slang: Good, spruce.

    April 14, 2009