hornet's
Aggressive wasp's possessive
Hornet's is the possessive form of hornet, the large stinging wasp.
It appears most often in hornet's nest, meaning a situation likely to provoke angry reactions if disturbed: Bringing up politics at dinner stirred up a hornet's nest.
The literal sense—a papery structure where hornets live—is less common than the figurative.
Venom-injecting body part
- venomInjected animal poison
- swarmMass of moving insects
- hiveBee dwelling structure
- colonyDependent territorial settlement
wasp · yellow jacket · mandibles · aggression · territorial · painful · attack · buzzing
Difficulty or distress
- controversyProlonged public disagreement
- uproarNoisy public disturbance
- backlashStrong negative reaction
- firestormSelf-perpetuating intense blaze
commotion · turmoil · outcry · furor · scandal · provocation · agitation · disturbance
stinger
Venom-injecting body part
colony · wasp · yellow jacket · mandibles · aggression · territorial · painful · attack · buzzing · paper nest
trouble
Difficulty or distress
- controversyProlonged public disagreement
- uproarNoisy public disturbance
- backlashStrong negative reaction
firestorm · commotion · turmoil · outcry · furor · scandal · provocation · agitation · disturbance · upheaval
hornet'sbee's
Of a buzzing pollinator
bed of roses · smooth sailing · safe haven · lamb's · walk in the park
- hornet's nestAggressive insect hive
- hornets' nestSource of angry chaos
- Charlotte Hornets
- mad as a hornetIntensely, aggressively angry
- hornet nestColony of aggressive insects
- murder hornetMassive predatory wasp species