as in whims
a sudden impulsive and apparently unmotivated idea or action
the last maggot he got in his head resulted in a disastrous extramarital affair
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Recent Examples of maggots
The agency said patients should not try to remove or dispose of the maggots themselves.
—
Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 22 Apr. 2026
This includes a weeklong winter power outage in 2019, and reports, as recently as last year, of maggots in inmates’ meals.
—Diego Lasarte, New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2026
The kitchen of the restaurant is crawling with maggots, the damp eats away at the tatami mats and wallpaper decorated with a design of a forest landscape.
—Shanti Escalante-De Mattei, ARTnews.com, 6 Apr. 2026
Symptoms include seeing or feeling maggots move within a skin wound or sore, or in the ears, nose, eyes or mouth.
—Rachael O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
Basil tends to repel flies and maggots, and marigolds do as well.
—Haniya Rae, Martha Stewart, 12 Mar. 2026
Their eggs, laid in open wounds or on mucous membranes, would then not hatch into the flesh-eating maggots that can infest livestock, wild mammals, household pets and even humans.
—John Hanna, Fortune, 10 Feb. 2026
Victims can develop large open wounds covered in maggots.
—Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 7 Feb. 2026
There were swarms of bugs and maggots.
—Jesse Bedayn, Denver Post, 5 Feb. 2026
Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 22 Apr. 2026
This includes a weeklong winter power outage in 2019, and reports, as recently as last year, of maggots in inmates’ meals.
—Diego Lasarte, New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2026
The kitchen of the restaurant is crawling with maggots, the damp eats away at the tatami mats and wallpaper decorated with a design of a forest landscape.
—Shanti Escalante-De Mattei, ARTnews.com, 6 Apr. 2026
Symptoms include seeing or feeling maggots move within a skin wound or sore, or in the ears, nose, eyes or mouth.
—Rachael O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
Basil tends to repel flies and maggots, and marigolds do as well.
—Haniya Rae, Martha Stewart, 12 Mar. 2026
Their eggs, laid in open wounds or on mucous membranes, would then not hatch into the flesh-eating maggots that can infest livestock, wild mammals, household pets and even humans.
—John Hanna, Fortune, 10 Feb. 2026
Victims can develop large open wounds covered in maggots.
—Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 7 Feb. 2026
There were swarms of bugs and maggots.
—Jesse Bedayn, Denver Post, 5 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for maggots
Noun
-
The first pitch of a game wouldn’t fall in that category, but Suzuki deferred to his hitter’s whims.—
Zack Meisel,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
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Now is the time for Colorado leaders to push back on this bad decision and fight for a future where disaster declarations are considered on their merits and qualifications, not on the angry whims of one man.—
The Denver Post Editorial Board,
Denver Post,
23 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
This requires the work of bees—both native species and the domestic honeybee.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Fungicide use could harm bees and other visitors in surprising ways, such as by killing those microbes that the bees ingest and need for gut health.—
Miri Talabac,
Baltimore Sun,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Additionally, curiosity prompts individuals to question assumptions and challenge preconceived notions, thereby reducing the influence of bias in decision-making processes.—
Rebecca Ahmed,
Big Think,
22 Apr. 2026
-
As the Paramount upfront meetings commence, the company appears poised to keep them and is not at present entertaining any notions of returning to the days when CBS held court in front of advertisers at Carnegie Hall.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Maggots.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/maggots. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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