sand fly

noun

variants or sandfly
ˈsan(d)-ˌflī How to pronounce sand fly (audio)
plural sand flies or sandflies
: any of various small biting dipteran flies (especially genus Phlebotomus of the family Psychodidae) see also sandfly fever

Examples of sand fly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Bangladesh made history in 2023 as the first country anywhere to eliminate kala-azar, otherwise known as visceral leishmaniasis, a disease transmitted by sand flies that is 95% fatal when left untreated. — Charlie Campbell, TIME, 2 May 2024 The afternoon was too hot to do much of anything except avoid the sand flies and wait for sunset. — Andrew Weil, Harper's Magazine, 13 Dec. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1736, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sand fly was in 1736

Rhymes for sand fly

See All Rhymes for sand fly

Browse Nearby Words

sand fly
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sand fly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sand%20fly. Accessed 20 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Kids Definition

sand fly

noun
: any of various small two-winged flies that bite

Medical Definition

sand fly

noun
variants or sandfly
: any of various small biting dipteran flies (families Psychodidae, Simuliidae, and Ceratopogonidae)
especially : any fly of the genus Phlebotomus see also sandfly fever

More from Merriam-Webster on sand fly

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sand fly

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Words You Always Have to Look Up
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

13 Unusually Long English Words

9 Superb Owl Words

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular Features

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

13 Unusually Long English Words

9 Superb Owl Words
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
number-twelve-balloon
12-Letter Words Quiz A dozen words, a dozen letters each.
See All