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locust

Etymology and origin of the English word locust

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Latin locusta
English locust

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈləʊ.kəst/ (UK); /ˈloʊ.kəst/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English locuste, borrowed from Old French locuste,[2][3][4][5] and directly from Latin lōcusta (“locust; lobster”),[2][3][4][5][6] a word related to lobster.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

A grasshopper noted for migrating in swarms that destroy vegetation (before 1325 in Barnhart; early 14c. in Etymonline; c. 1200 in the OED, in the French form languste).[3][4][7]

Semantic evolution

The OED notes that the Hebrew Bible has nine names for the insect, variously rendered in English Bibles as locust, grasshopper, caterpillar and others.[4] Figuratively, a person of devouring or destructive habits was a locust (1546).[7] The fruit of the carob tree was called locust (1615), probably from a supposed resemblance of the pod to the insect,[3][4][7] since Greek akrís “locust” was applied in the Levant to carob pods, and the “locusts” eaten by John the Baptist were long believed to be these pods.[3][4] By 1640 the name passed to other trees, especially the North American black locust and honey locust.[3][7][4] In America the word was also applied to the cicada, as in seventeen-year locust.[2][7][6]

Timeline

  • c. 1200 – languste, the insect (Old French form).[7][4]
  • before 1325 – locust.[3]
  • 1546 – a destructive person.[7]
  • 1615 – the carob pod.[7][3][4]
  • 1623 – locust tree, the carob tree.[3]
  • 1640 – other trees, such as the black locust.[7][3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. Any of various grasshoppers of the family Acrididae that migrate in huge swarms, devouring vegetation and crops.
  2. A cicada, especially the seventeen-year locust.
  3. Any of several North American trees of the genus Robinia, especially the black locust, or related trees such as the honey locust and the carob; also, their wood.

Word family

  • locust bean
  • lobster
  • grasshopper
  • cicada
  • carob

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Locust.” Etymologically, 11 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/locust. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·