Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Meloe \Mel"o*e\, [ NL., fr. Gr. ? to probe a wound.] (Zo["o]l.)
   A genus of beetles without wings, but having short oval
   elytra; the oil beetles. These beetles are sometimes used
   instead of cantharides for raising blisters. See {Oil
   beetle}, under {Oil}.