• Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

Where does the term “devil’s darning needle” come from and What does devil’s-darning-needle mean?

By Karen Hill

Devil’s-darning-needle is the common name in the United States of the dragonfly (which see).

We abridge it sometimes to darning-needle, and, a hundred years ago, Thoreau and others spoke of the insect as devil’s-needle.

The name is fairly obvious: large staring eyes which remind one of Satan himself, and an extremely slender and long body, not unlike a needle.

Related

  • Where does the term "Go-Devil" come from and What does Go Devil mean?
  • Where does the word "devil" come from and What does devil mean in Greek?
  • Where Does the Tasmanian Devil Live and Is There Really an Animal Called the Tasmanian Devil?
  • Were The Devil's Footprints made by the Devon Devil?
  • How Is It Possible For a Compass Needle To Be Reverse Magnetized After a Thunderstorm Like In Moby Dick?
  • What Does the "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea" Mean and Where Did the Expression Come From?

Filed Under: Language

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Footer

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
Accomplishments Animals Culture Finance Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Law Mythology Odds People Plants Religion Science Space The World Universe Your Body

About · Privacy · Contact
Copyright © 2019 Zippy Facts