Wax, n.
 1. A fatty, solid substance, produced by bees, and employed by them in the construction of their comb; -- usually called beeswax. It is first excreted, from a row of pouches along their sides, in the form of scales, which, being masticated and mixed with saliva, become whitened and tenacious. Its natural color is pale or dull yellow.
 Note: ☞ Beeswax consists essentially of cerotic acid (constituting the more soluble part) and of myricyl palmitate (constituting the less soluble part).
 2. Hence, any substance resembling beeswax in consistency or appearance.  Specifically: --
 (a) Physiol. Cerumen, or earwax.  See Cerumen.
 (b) A waxlike composition used for uniting surfaces, for excluding air, and for other purposes; as, sealing wax, grafting wax, etching wax, etc.
 (c) A waxlike composition used by shoemakers for rubbing their thread.
 (d) Zool. A substance similar to beeswax, secreted by several species of scale insects, as the Chinese wax.  See Wax insect, below.
 (e) Bot. A waxlike product secreted by certain plants.  See Vegetable wax, under Vegetable.
 (f) Min. A substance, somewhat resembling wax, found in connection with certain deposits of rock salt and coal; -- called also mineral wax, and ozocerite.
 (g) Thick sirup made by boiling down the sap of the sugar maple, and then cooling.  [Local U. S.]
 Japanese wax, a waxlike substance made in Japan from the berries of certain species of Rhus, esp. Rhus succedanea.
 Mineral wax. Min. See Wax, 2 (f), above.
 Wax cloth. See Waxed cloth, under Waxed.
 Wax end. See Waxed end, under Waxed.
 Wax flower, a flower made of, or resembling, wax.
 Wax insect Zool., any one of several species of scale insects belonging to the family Coccidae, which secrete from their bodies a waxlike substance, especially the Chinese wax insect (Coccus Sinensis) from which a large amount of the commercial Chinese wax is obtained. Called also pela.
 Wax light, a candle or taper of wax.
 Wax moth Zool., a pyralid moth (Galleria cereana) whose larvae feed upon honeycomb, and construct silken galleries among the fragments. The moth has dusky gray wings streaked with brown near the outer edge. The larva is yellowish white with brownish dots. Called also bee moth.
 Wax myrtle. Bot. See Bayberry.
 Wax painting, a kind of painting practiced by the ancients, under the name of encaustic. The pigments were ground with wax, and diluted. After being applied, the wax was melted with hot irons and the color thus fixed.
 Wax palm. Bot. (a) A species of palm (Ceroxylon Andicola) native of the Andes, the stem of which is covered with a secretion, consisting of two thirds resin and one third wax, which, when melted with a third of fat, makes excellent candles. (b) A Brazilian tree (Copernicia cerifera) the young leaves of which are covered with a useful waxy secretion.
 Wax paper, paper prepared with a coating of white wax and other ingredients.
 Wax plant Bot., a name given to several plants, as: (a) The Indian pipe (see under Indian). (b) The Hoya carnosa, a climbing plant with polished, fleshy leaves. (c) Certain species of Begonia with similar foliage.
 Wax tree Bot. (a) A tree or shrub (Ligustrum lucidum) of China, on which certain insects make a thick deposit of a substance resembling white wax. (b) A kind of sumac (Rhus succedanea) of Japan, the berries of which yield a sort of wax. (c) A rubiaceous tree (Elaeagia utilis) of New Grenada, called by the inhabitants “arbol del cera.”
 Wax yellow, a dull yellow, resembling the natural color of beeswax.
 Bee n.
 1. Zool. An insect of the order Hymenoptera, and family Apidæ (the honeybees), or family Andrenidæ (the solitary bees.) See Honeybee.
 Note: ☞ There are many genera and species. The common honeybee (Apis mellifica) lives in swarms, each of which has its own queen, its males or drones, and its very numerous workers, which are barren females.  Besides the Apis mellifica there are other species and varieties of honeybees, as the Apis ligustica of Spain and Italy; the Apis Indica of India; the Apis fasciata of Egypt. The bumblebee is a species of Bombus. The tropical honeybees belong mostly to Melipoma and Trigona.
 2. A neighborly gathering of people who engage in united labor for the benefit of an individual or family; as, a quilting bee; a husking bee; a raising bee. [U. S.]
    The cellar . . . was dug by a bee in a single day.   --S. G. Goodrich.
 3. pl.  Naut. Pieces of hard wood bolted to the sides of the bowsprit, to reeve the fore-topmast stays through; -- called also bee blocks.
 Bee beetle Zool., a beetle (Trichodes apiarius) parasitic in beehives.
 Bee bird Zool., a bird that eats the honeybee, as the European flycatcher, and the American kingbird.
 Bee flower Bot., an orchidaceous plant of the genus Ophrys (Ophrys apifera), whose flowers have some resemblance to bees, flies, and other insects.
 Bee fly Zool., a two winged fly of the family Bombyliidæ. Some species, in the larval state, are parasitic upon bees.
 Bee garden, a garden or inclosure to set beehives in ; an apiary. --Mortimer.
 Bee glue, a soft, unctuous matter, with which bees cement the combs to the hives, and close up the cells; -- called also propolis.
 Bee hawk Zool., the honey buzzard.
 Bee killer Zool., a large two-winged fly of the family Asilidæ (esp. Trupanea apivora) which feeds upon the honeybee. See Robber fly.
 Bee louse Zool., a minute, wingless, dipterous insect (Braula cæca) parasitic on hive bees.
 Bee martin Zool., the kingbird (Tyrannus Carolinensis) which occasionally feeds on bees.
 Bee moth Zool., a moth (Galleria cereana) whose larvæ feed on honeycomb, occasioning great damage in beehives.
 Bee wolf Zool., the larva of the bee beetle. See Illust. of Bee beetle.
 To have a bee in the head or  To have a bee in the bonnet. (a) To be choleric. [Obs.] (b) To be restless or uneasy. --B. Jonson. (c) To be full of fancies; to be a little crazy. “She's whiles crack-brained, and has a bee in her head.” --Sir W. Scott.
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 bee moth
      n : moth whose larvae live in and feed on bee honeycombs [syn: wax
          moth, Galleria mellonella]