mealybug
noun
mealybug is spelled M-E-A-L-Y-B-U-G: 8 letters. It appears about once in every 30 million words in written English, the 165,739th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, mealybug means “Any of various insects of the family Pseudococcidae, which secrete a powdery wax and are pests of fruit trees” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of mealybug is mealybugs.
How many letters and syllables are in mealybug?
| Letters | 8: M-E-A-L-Y-B-U-G |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 30 million words; the 165,739th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is mealybug?
Mealybug appears about once in every 30 million words in written English, the 165,739th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Forms of mealybug
- mealybugs plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does mealybug mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Any of various insects of the family Pseudococcidae, which secrete a powdery wax and are pests of fruit trees.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Mealybug in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense Translations:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Schmierlaus, Wolllaus |
| Portuguese | cochonilha-farinhenta |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does mealybug come from?
From mealy + bug, from the appearance of the powder which resembles meal (“flour”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).