Meanings
nounblack fly (plural blackflies)
plural blackflies
- alternativeAlternative spelling of blackfly.
In the summer, 90 deg. was common, and the attacks of the vicious black-fly were devastating.
1959 March 28, “New railways in Quebec”, in Railway Magazine, page 202
Synonyms & antonyms
nounsmall blackish stout-bodied biting fly having aquatic larvae; sucks the blood of birds as well as humans and other mammals
Similar
blackflybuffalo gnat
Broader
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Cite this entry
APA
black fly. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/black%20fly
MLA
“black fly.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/black%20fly. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “black fly,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/black%20fly.
Source: black fly on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.