Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Worm \Worm\ (w[^u]rm), n. [OE. worm, wurm, AS. wyrm; akin to D.
worm, OS. & G. wurm, Icel. ormr, Sw. & Dan. orm, Goth.
wa['u]rms, L. vermis, Gr. ? a wood worm. Cf. {Vermicelli},
{Vermilion}, {Vermin}.]
1. A creeping or a crawling animal of any kind or size, as a
serpent, caterpillar, snail, or the like. [Archaic]
There came a viper out of the heat, and leapt on his
hand. When the men of the country saw the worm hang
on his hand, they said, This man must needs be a
murderer. --Tyndale
(Acts xxviii.
3, 4).
'T is slander, Whose edge is sharper than the sword,
whose tongue Outvenoms all the worms of Nile.
--Shak.
When Cerberus perceived us, the great worm, His
mouth he opened and displayed his tusks.
--Longfellow.
2. Any small creeping animal or reptile, either entirely
without feet, or with very short ones, including a great
variety of animals; as, an earthworm; the blindworm.
Specifically: (Zo["o]l.)
(a) Any helminth; an entozo["o]n.
(b) Any annelid.
(c) An insect larva.
(d) pl. Same as {Vermes}.
3. An internal tormentor; something that gnaws or afflicts
one's mind with remorse.
The worm of conscience still begnaw thy soul!
--Shak.
4. A being debased and despised.
I am a worm, and no man. --Ps. xxii. 6.
5. Anything spiral, vermiculated, or resembling a worm; as:
(a) The thread of a screw.
The threads of screws, when bigger than can be
made in screw plates, are called worms. --Moxon.
(b) A spiral instrument or screw, often like a double
corkscrew, used for drawing balls from firearms.
(c) (Anat.) A certain muscular band in the tongue of some
animals, as the dog; the lytta. See {Lytta}.
(d) The condensing tube of a still, often curved and wound
to economize space. See Illust. of {Still}.
(e) (Mach.) A short revolving screw, the threads of which
drive, or are driven by, a worm wheel by gearing into
its teeth or cogs. See Illust. of {Worm gearing},
below.
{Worm abscess} (Med.), an abscess produced by the irritation
resulting from the lodgment of a worm in some part of the
body.
{Worm fence}. See under {Fence}.
{Worm gear}. (Mach.)
(a) A worm wheel.
(b) Worm gearing.
{Worm gearing}, gearing consisting of a worm and worm wheel
working together.
{Worm grass}. (Bot.)
(a) See {Pinkroot}, 2
(a) .
(b) The white stonecrop ({Sedum album}) reputed to have
qualities as a vermifuge. --Dr. Prior.
{Worm oil} (Med.), an anthelmintic consisting of oil obtained
from the seeds of {Chenopodium anthelminticum}.
{Worm powder} (Med.), an anthelmintic powder.
{Worm snake}. (Zo["o]l.) See {Thunder snake}
(b), under {Thunder}.
{Worm tea} (Med.), an anthelmintic tea or tisane.
{Worm tincture} (Med.), a tincture prepared from dried
earthworms, oil of tartar, spirit of wine, etc. [Obs.]
{Worm wheel}, a cogwheel having teeth formed to fit into the
spiral spaces of a screw called a worm, so that the wheel
may be turned by, or may turn, the worm; -- called also
{worm gear}, and sometimes {tangent wheel}. See Illust. of
{Worm gearing}, above.
Source : WordNet®
worm snake
n 1: wormlike burrowing snake of warm regions having vestigial
eyes [syn: {blind snake}]
2: small reddish wormlike snake of eastern United States [syn:
{thunder snake}, {Carphophis amoenus}]