scale insect: Meaning and Definition of

scale' in"sect

Pronunciation: [key]
  1. any of numerous small, plant-sucking homopterous insects of the superfamily Coccoidea, the males of which are winged and the females wingless, often covered by a waxy secretion resembling scales.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.