leech
Plural: leeches
Noun
- carnivorous or bloodsucking aquatic or terrestrial worms typically having a sucker at each end
- a follower who hangs around a host (without benefit to the host) in hope of gain or advantage
- An aquatic blood-sucking annelid of class Hirudinea, especially Hirudo medicinalis.
- A person who derives profit from others in a parasitic fashion.
- A glass tube designed for drawing blood from damaged tissue by means of a vacuum.
- A physician.
- A healer.
- The vertical edge of a square sail.
- The aft edge of a triangular sail.
Verb
Verb Forms: leeched, leeching, leeches
- To cling to and feed upon, draining resources.
- draw blood
- To apply a leech medicinally, so that it sucks blood from the patient.
- To drain (resources) without giving back.
- To treat, cure or heal.
Examples
- Bert leeched hundreds of files from the BBS, but never uploaded anything in return.
- He tried to LEECH points off my premium squares with small, connecting words.
Origin / Etymology
From Middle English leche (“blood-sucking worm”), from Old English lǣċe (“blood-sucking worm”), akin to Middle Dutch lāke ("blood-sucking worm"; > modern Dutch laak).
Synonyms
bleed, bloodsucker, hirudinean, parasite, phlebotomise, phlebotomize, sponge, sponger, barber, cure, doctor, drain, heal, healer, physician, treat, vampire
Scrabble Score: 10
leech: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Wordleech: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
leech: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary