bee fly

noun

: any of a family (Bombyliidae) of dipteran flies many of which resemble bees

Examples of bee fly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Ford, when talking to reporters, had a bee fly into his mouth mid-sentence. Mark Heim | Mheim@al.com, al, 15 Aug. 2022 After each correct choice, the bee flies back to the hive on its own, to offload its sweet reward. Quanta Magazine, 22 Jan. 2020 In order to get some quality footage of bees flying, researchers temporarily blocked access to their hive. David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, 21 Nov. 2018 And on long summer days, when the hives are busy with bees flying in and out to forage, Mack is cautious. New York Times, 3 July 2018 During a speech for Prince Charles' 70th birthday celebration, Prince Harry was interrupted by a bee flying around his head. Lauren Landrum, CNN, 25 May 2018 Over 20,000 species of bees fly the Earth, with unique bodies and strategies for collecting pollen. Matt Simon, WIRED, 23 May 2018 As there could be some 20,000 bees flying, some means of tracking them is required. The Economist, 28 Mar. 2018 During one particular moment, a solitary bee flies over to Dayveon and stings him in a carnal close-up, and then—as nature would have it—subsequently dies. Tonja Renée Stidhum, The Root, 15 Jan. 2018

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bee fly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1751, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bee fly was in 1751

Dictionary Entries Near bee fly

Cite this Entry

“Bee fly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bee%20fly. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on bee fly

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!