bug

IPA/bʌɡ/
KK[bˈʌɡ]IPA/bʌɡ/

bug — noun

  • bugsingular
  • bugsplural

1. a tiny crawling creature, especially one people notice around plants, food, or t

1.nounB1
Definition

a tiny crawling creature, especially one people notice around plants, food, or the house.

Example

Sirin shook a tiny bug from the lettuce before making lunch.

shake a bug from + object

A green bug crawled across Omar's notebook during science class.

bug crawled across + surface

Common collocations
  • tiny bug
  • green bug
  • bug landed
  • keep bugs off roses
Synonyms
  • insect

    the more neutral and scientific general word

  • beetle

    one particular kind of insect, not a general label

  • pest

    focuses on the trouble an insect causes rather than its type

Grammar Patterns

a bug crawls on + surface

find a bug in + place

keep bugs off + plant/object

Usage Note

Often used in everyday speech when the exact kind of insect does not matter. It sounds more casual and sometimes more negative than the neutral word 'insect'.

2. a mild sickness, often infectious, that usually lasts only a short time.

2.nounB2
Definition

a mild sickness, often infectious, that usually lasts only a short time.

Example

Tendai missed practice because a stomach bug kept him in bed.

stomach bug

A bug is going around the office, so several desks are empty.

a bug is going around

Common collocations
  • stomach bug
  • catch a bug
  • pick up a bug
  • a bug going around
Synonyms
  • illness

    a broader and more neutral word for any sickness

  • infection

    more medical and often used when the cause is clearer

  • virus

    often used loosely in conversation, but strictly the cause rather than the sickness itself

Grammar Patterns

have a bug

catch a bug

a bug is going around

Usage Note

Mostly informal and common in everyday talk about short illnesses. Distinguish from sense 6: this sense names the sickness a person has, not the germ that causes it.

3. an error in software or another electronic system that makes it behave wrongly.

3.nounB2
Definition

an error in software or another electronic system that makes it behave wrongly.

Example

Christopher found a bug that erased every new photo tag.

find a bug that + result

One bug in the payment page blocked orders all morning.

bug in + system part

Common collocations
  • find a bug
  • fix a bug
  • software bug
  • bug in the payment page
Synonyms
  • glitch

    often suggests a brief or minor problem, especially one that appears suddenly

  • defect

    a more formal word for a fault in design or performance

  • flaw

    a broad word for an imperfection, not only a technical one

Grammar Patterns

find a bug

fix a bug

a bug in + software/system

Usage Note

Most common in computing and engineering. It usually refers to an unexpected fault in code or system behavior rather than damage caused by a harmful program.

Common Mistakes

The app has a virus in the code.
The app has a bug in the code.
a virus is malicious software that spreads itself, while a bug is an ordinary coding fault.

4. a hidden microphone or similar device used to hear private talk without permissi

4.nounC1
Definition

a hidden microphone or similar device used to hear private talk without permission.

Example

Police found a bug taped under the meeting table.

find a bug under + object

Ravindra checked the hotel phone for a hidden bug.

check for a hidden bug

Common collocations
  • hidden bug
  • plant a bug
  • find a bug under the table
  • remove a bug from the wall
Synonyms
  • listening device

    a broader neutral term for any tool used to hear conversations secretly

  • microphone

    the general device for picking up sound, not always hidden or illegal

  • wiretap

    often refers more specifically to secretly listening through a phone connection

Grammar Patterns

plant a bug

find a bug under + object

remove a bug from + place

Usage Note

Usually appears in stories about spying, crime, or security checks. Distinguish from verb 2: this noun names the device itself, while verb 2 describes secretly putting it somewhere.

5. a sudden strong interest that makes someone want to keep doing an activity.

5.nounC1
Definition

a sudden strong interest that makes someone want to keep doing an activity.

Example

After one sailing lesson, Quinn caught the bug immediately.

catch the bug

Tomás got the baking bug and bought three cake tins.

get the + hobby + bug

Common collocations
  • catch the bug
  • get the baking bug
  • the travel bug
  • the gardening bug
Synonyms
  • enthusiasm

    a general word for strong interest, without the sudden catchy image

  • craze

    often suggests a stronger or more fashionable shared excitement

  • passion

    usually sounds deeper and longer-lasting than this informal phrase

Grammar Patterns

catch the bug

get the + hobby + bug

the travel/gardening bug

Usage Note

Common in lively informal phrases such as 'catch the bug' or 'get the gardening bug'. It refers to strong excitement about an activity, not to a real insect or illness.

Common Mistakes

I got a bug for chess.
I got the chess bug.
this sense usually appears with 'the' in set patterns about becoming enthusiastic.

6. a germ such as a virus or bacterium, especially one that makes people or animals

6.nounC1
Definition

a germ such as a virus or bacterium, especially one that makes people or animals ill.

Example

Doctors still do not know which bug caused the fever.

which bug caused + illness

This bug can spread through dirty water in hot weather.

bug spread through + source

Common collocations
  • which bug caused the fever
  • a bug spread through water
  • trace the bug to milk
  • disease-causing bug
Synonyms
  • germ

    the broad everyday word for a tiny organism that can cause disease

  • microbe

    a more scientific-sounding general term

  • pathogen

    a formal medical word for a disease-causing organism

Grammar Patterns

which bug caused + illness

a bug spreads through + source

trace the bug to + source

Usage Note

Usually informal and often heard in medical or everyday talk when the exact scientific name is unknown. Distinguish from sense 2: this sense names the germ itself, not the sickness it causes.

bug — verb

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Bug' is a loose everyday word for a small crawling creature, especially when the speaker does not care about the exact type. 'Insect' is the more neutral and scientific choice, so it fits schoolwork, news reports, and careful description. 'Beetle' names one specific kind of insect with a hard outer shell, so not every bug is a beetle. 'Pest' shifts the focus to harm or annoyance rather than biology, and a pest may be an insect, a mouse, or another unwanted creature. You might brush a bug off your sleeve, study an insect in class, find a beetle under a log, and call ants pests when they keep getting into the kitchen.

bug ↗insect ↗beetle ↗pest ↗

Etymology

Middle EnglishEnglish

English first used 'bug' for something frightening or creepy, and later for small crawling creatures. From that everyday idea, the word widened into newer senses for germs, hidden listening devices, and faults in machines or computer programs.

First known use

1594

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1b Verb (1)