leech

/litʃ/

/litʃ/

Other forms: leeches; leeching; leeched

A leech is a kind of worm that feeds by sucking blood from other animals. You might find yourself needing to pull a leech off your leg after swimming in a lake.

Because leeches are parasites, it's common for people to use the word as a metaphor for someone who sponges off of other people. If you have a friend who is always borrowing money but never pays it back, and who is known for requesting favors without granting them in return, you can call him a leech. The blood-sucking leech was once commonly used by doctors who treated patients by "bleeding" them, a practice that's still occasionally used in medicine today.

Definitions of leech

1. noun

   carnivorous or bloodsucking aquatic or terrestrial worms typically having a sucker at each end
   synonyms: bloodsucker, hirudinean

   types:

   Hirudo medicinalis, medicinal leech

   large European freshwater leech formerly used for bloodletting

   horseleech

   any of several large freshwater leeches

   type of:

   annelid, annelid worm, segmented worm

   worms with cylindrical bodies segmented both internally and externally
2. noun

   a follower who hangs around a host (without benefit to the host) in hope of gain or advantage
   synonyms: parasite, sponge, sponger

   type of:

   follower

   a person who accepts the leadership of another
3. verb

   draw blood
   synonyms: bleed, phlebotomise, phlebotomize

   type of:

   care for, treat

   provide treatment for