Vermin
/ˈvɜːr.mɪn/noun
Small animals or insects regarded as pests or carriers of disease.
Did you know?In medieval Latin, vermin meant “small creatures” from the same root as worm, and English later narrowed it into a harsh word for pests, especially during plague-ridden centuries.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*wer-
“to turn, bend, or twist”
Latin
Latin
vermis
“worm”
Late Latin
Latin
verminum
“small worms, vermin”
Old French
Old French
vermine
“vermin, noxious small creatures”
Middle English
English
vermin
“noxious animals, pests”
Modern English
English
vermin
“small animals or insects regarded as pests or carriers of disease”