n. 1 any four-winged insect of the superfamily Apoidea which collects nectar and pollen, produces wax and honey, and lives in large communities. 2 any insect of a similar type. 3 (usu. busy bee) a busy person. 4 esp. US a meeting for communal work or amusement. bee-bread honey or pollen used as food by bees. bee dance a dance performed by worker bees to inform the colony of the location of food. bee-eater any bright-plumaged insect-eating bird of the family Meropidae with a long slender curved bill. a bee in one's bonnet an obsession. bee-keeper a keeper of bees. bee-keeping the occupation of keeping bees. bee-master a bee-keeper. bee orchid a kind of European orchid, Ophrys apifera, with bee-shaped flowers. the bee's knees sl. something outstandingly good (thinks he's the bee's knees).
[ OE beo f. Gmc ]