Hebrews zebub, (Ecclesiastes 10:1; Isaiah 7:18). This fly was so grievous a pest that the Phoenicians invoked against it the aid of their god Baal-zebub (q.v.). The prophet Isaiah (7:18) alludes to some poisonous fly which was believed to be found on the confines of Egypt, and which would be called by the Lord. Poisonous flies exist in many parts of Africa, for instance, the different kinds of tsetse.

Hebrews `arob, the name given to the insects sent as a plague on the land of Egypt (Exodus 8:21-31; Psalm 78:45; 105:31). The LXX. render this by a word which means the "dog-fly," the cynomuia. The Jewish commentators regarded the Hebrew word here as connected with the word 'arab, which means "mingled;" and they accordingly supposed the plague to consist of a mixed multitude of animals, beasts, reptiles, and insects. But there is no doubt that "the 'arab" denotes a single definite species. Some interpreters regard it as the Blatta orientalis, the cockroach, a species of beetle. These insects "inflict very painful bites with their jaws; gnaw and destroy clothes, household furniture, leather, and articles of every kind, and either consume or render unavailable all eatables."

Noah Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language

1. (v. i.) To move in or pass through the air with wings, as a bird.

2. (v. i.) To move through the air or before the wind; esp., to pass or be driven rapidly through the air by any impulse.

3. (v. i.) To float, wave, or rise in the air, as sparks or a flag.

4. (v. i.) To move or pass swiftly; to hasten away; to circulate rapidly; as, a ship flies on the deep; a top flies around; rumor flies.

5. (v. i.) To run from danger; to attempt to escape; to flee; as, an enemy or a coward flies. See Note under Flee.

6. (v. i.) To move suddenly, or with violence; to do an act suddenly or swiftly; -- usually with a qualifying word; as, a door flies open; a bomb flies apart.

7. (v. t.) To cause to fly or to float in the air, as a bird, a kite, a flag, etc.

8. (v. t.) To fly or flee from; to shun; to avoid.

9. (v. t.) To hunt with a hawk.

10. (v. i.) Any winged insect; esp., one with transparent wings; as, the Spanish fly; firefly; gall fly; dragon fly.

11. (v. i.) Any dipterous insect; as, the house fly; flesh fly; black fly. See Diptera.

12. (n.) A hook dressed in imitation of a fly, -- used for fishing.

13. (n.) A familiar spirit; a witch's attendant.

14. (n.) A parasite.

15. (n.) A kind of light carriage for rapid transit, plying for hire and usually drawn by one horse.

16. (n.) The length of an extended flag from its staff; sometimes, the length from the union to the extreme end.

17. (n.) The part of a vane pointing the direction from which the wind blows.

18. (v. i.) That part of a compass on which the points are marked; the compass card.

19. (v. i.) Two or more vanes set on a revolving axis, to act as a fanner, or to equalize or impede the motion of machinery by the resistance of the air, as in the striking part of a clock.

20. (n.) A heavy wheel, or cross arms with weights at the ends on a revolving axis, to regulate or equalize the motion of machinery by means of its inertia, where the power communicated, or the resistance to be overcome, is variable, as in the steam engine or the coining press. See Fly wheel (below).

21. (n.) The piece hinged to the needle, which holds the engaged loop in position while the needle is penetrating another loop; a latch.

22. (n.) The pair of arms revolving around the bobbin, in a spinning wheel or spinning frame, to twist the yarn.

23. (n.) A shuttle driven through the shed by a blow or jerk.

24. (v. i.) Formerly, the person who took the printed sheets from the press.

25. (n.) A vibrating frame with fingers, attached to a power to a power printing press for doing the same work.

26. (n.) The outer canvas of a tent with double top, usually drawn over the ridgepole, but so extended as to touch the roof of the tent at no other place.

27. (n.) One of the upper screens of a stage in a theater.

28. (n.) The fore flap of a bootee; also, a lap on trousers, overcoats, etc., to conceal a row of buttons.

29. (n.) A batted ball that flies to a considerable distance, usually high in the air; also, the flight of a ball so struck; as, it was caught on the fly.

30. (a.) Knowing; wide awake; fully understanding another's meaning.