Dictionary

chigger en · NOUN · etymology 1

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio
• /ˈt͡ʃɪɡɚ/

Etymology

From chigoe, likely from a Cariban language term such as Kari'na siko (“chigoe”) (early recorded variant chico), from Proto-Cariban *tikô.

Meanings

1. A chigoe (Tunga penetrans), a kind of flea found in tropical climates.
2. A harvest mite (Trombiculidae spp.), a very small, red mite endemic to the Midwestern and Southeastern US, the infestation of which causes intense itching.
   • Dr. Lareau, an emergency medicine physician at Carilion Franklin Memorial Hospital in Virginia, had seen these marks once or twice before on patients. She knew what had caused them. They were from chiggers, a species of tiny, reddish-brown mites able to leave bites that remain itchy for days or weeks. 2024 July 25, Carly Stern, “It’s Chigger Season. Here’s What to Know About the Pests.”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
   • After we had been out about four days the entire army was attacked by ‘chiggers’. They are tiny insects, millions of them, who have made their home on the Kansas prairie. 1933, Frank Clune, Try Anything Once, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, page 68:

Forms

Deriveds

chigger weed

Synonyms

harvest mite (mite)

Translations (27)

pt bitacaia (chigoe flea) · hu fekélybolha (chigoe flea) · pt bicho-de-pé (chigoe flea) · hu bársonyatka (harvest mite) · es nigua (chigoe flea) · pt tunga (chigoe flea) · car siko (chigoe flea) · de Sandfloh (chigoe flea) · es sote (chigoe flea) · pt nígua (chigoe flea) · ja ツツガムシ (harvest mite) · ki ngage (chigoe flea) · akz wancholaski (harvest mite) · pt matacanha (chigoe flea) · es pique (chigoe flea) · cs blecha písečná (chigoe flea) · fr puce chique (chigoe flea) · fr aoutat (harvest mite) · pt zunga (chigoe flea) · pl pchła piaskowa (chigoe flea) · ja スナノミ (chigoe flea) · fi hiekkakirppu (chigoe flea) · akz wancholaski (chigoe flea) · pl lądzień (harvest mite) · unm màxki muxwès (harvest mite) · ki ndutu (chigoe flea) · hu homoki bolha (chigoe flea)

chigger en · NOUN · etymology 2

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio
• /ˈt͡ʃɪɡɚ/

Etymology

Blend of chink + nigger.

Meanings

1. (US, derogatory, ethnic, offensive, slang, slur) An East Asian person who behaves in ways similar to a stereotypical urban African American.
   • —He's not black, Stacia Jacobs who smelled like pee said. — He's yellow and black. He's a chigger. Do you know what a chigger is? It's a chink and a nigger. 2007, James Boice, MVP: A Novel, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 37:

Forms