fly swatter

American

Or fly-swatter,

noun

a device for killing flies, mosquitoes, and other insects, usually a square sheet of wire mesh attached to a long handle.

Etymology

Origin of fly swatter

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He was just sitting there in his old rocking chair, with a fly swatter in his hand, looking off across the country.

From Literature

He picked up his fly swatter, reared back, and said, “That’s a long story. It happened way back when you were just a little bitty thing. One year a fellow from the college in Tahlequah came up here and stayed all summer with your grandma and me. He was one of those butterfly professors.”

From Literature

As usual, he was just sitting there looking off across the country; with a fly swatter in his hand and rocking away.

From Literature

Especially the electronic fly swatter, encased in plastic.

From Los Angeles Times

The firm's marketing manager Sam Baylis shows the BBC the tennis racket-style electrified fly swatter, leaned up against a wall.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023