Wormlike

zoology. any of numerous long, slender, soft-bodied, legless, bilaterally symmetrical invertebrates, including the flatworms, roundworms, acanthocephalans, nemerteans, gordiaceans, and annelids.
(loosely) any of numerous small creeping animals with more or less slender, elongated bodies, and without limbs or with very short ones, including individuals of widely differing kinds, as earthworms, tapeworms, insect larvae, and adult forms of some insects.
something resembling or suggesting a worm in appearance, movement, etc.
informal. a groveling, abject, or contemptible person.
the spiral pipe in which the vapor is condensed in a still.
(not in technical use) screw thread (def 1).
screw conveyor.
a rotating cylinder or shaft, cut with one or more helical threads, that engages with and drives a worm wheel.
something that penetrates, injures, or consumes slowly or insidiously, like a gnawing worm.
worms, (used with a singular verb) pathology, veterinary pathology. any disease or disorder arising from the presence of parasitic worms in the intestines or other tissues; helminthiasis.
(used with a plural verb) metallurgy. irregularities visible on the surfaces of some metals subject to plastic deformation.
the lytta of a dog or other carnivorous animal.
computer code planted illegally in a software program so as to destroy data in any system that downloads the program, as by reformatting the hard disk.
to move or act like a worm; creep, crawl, or advance slowly or stealthily.
to achieve something by insidious procedure (usually followed by into):
to worm into another’s favor.
metallurgy, craze (def 8a).
to cause to move or advance in a devious or stealthy manner:
the thief wormed his hand into my coat pocket.
to get by persistent, insidious efforts (usually followed by out or from):
to worm a secret out of a person.
to insinuate (oneself or one’s way) into another’s favor, confidence, etc.:
to worm his way into the king’s favor.
to free from worms:
he wormed the puppies.
nautical. to wind yarn or the like spirally round (a rope) so as to fill the sp-ces between the strands and render the surface smooth.
historical examples

the glow-worm and other beetles jean henri fabre
explanation of terms used in entomology john. b. smith
the flea harold russell
the rise of canada, from barbarism to wealth and civilisation charles roger
b-ss, pike, perch, and others james alexander henshall
all on the irish sh-r- e. somerville and martin ross
the flea harold russell
astounding stories of super-science september 1930 various

noun
any of various invertebrates, esp the annelids (earthworms, etc), nematodes (roundworms), and flatworms, having a slender elongated body related adjective vermicular
any of various insect larvae having an elongated body, such as the silkworm and wireworm
any of various unrelated animals that resemble annelids, nematodes, etc, such as the glow-worm and shipworm
a gnawing or insinuating force or agent that torments or slowly eats away
a wretched or spineless person
anything that resembles a worm in appearance or movement
a shaft on which a helical groove has been cut, as in a gear arrangement in which such a shaft meshes with a toothed wheel
a spiral pipe cooled by air or flowing water, used as a condenser in a still
a nontechnical name for lytta
(anatomy) any wormlike organ, structure, or part, such as the middle lobe of the cerebellum (vermis cerebelli) technical name vermis
(computing) a program that duplicates itself many times in a network and prevents its destruction. it often carries a logic bomb or virus
verb
to move, act, or cause to move or act with the slow sinuous movement of a worm
foll by in, into, out of, etc. to make (one’s way) slowly and stealthily; insinuate (oneself)
(transitive; often foll by out of or from) to extract (information, a secret, etc) from by persistent questioning
(transitive) to free from or purge of worms
(transitive) (nautical) to wind yarn around (a rope) so as to fill the sp-ces between the strands and render the surface smooth for parcelling and serving
noun acronym (computing)
write once read many times: an optical disk that enables users to store data but not change it
n.
v.

worm
(wûrm)

our living language : earthworms are one of many types of worms, including those of the flat and round species. over a century ago, charles darwin spent 39 years studying earthworms and wrote the formation of vegetable mould through the action of worms with observations on their habits, an entire book that described his research on earthworm behavior and intelligence and further explained how important earthworms are to agriculture. “long before [the plow] existed,” he wrote, “the land was, in fact, regularly plowed and still continues to be thus plowed by earthworms. it may be doubted whether there are many other animals which have played so important a part in the history of the world.” darwin was referring to the way that earthworms naturally mix and till soil, while both improving its structure and increasing its nutrients. as they tunnel in the soil, earthworms open channels that allow in air and water, improving drainage and easing the way for plants to send down roots; they also carry nutrients from deep soils to the surface. earthworms eat plant material in the soil, decaying leaves, and leaf litter, and their own waste provides nourishment for plants and other organisms. slime, a secretion of earthworms, contains nitrogen, an important plant nutrient. it is estimated that each year earthworms in one acre of land move 18 or more tons of soil.

write once, read many [times]

worm into
worm out of
worm turns, the