litterbug

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litterbug

/ˈlɪtɚˌbʌɡ/ US

Where it comes from

From litter + bug. Coined in 1947 by New York copywriter Paul B. Gioni for The American Ad Council, perhaps punning on jitterbug.

noun litterbugs · litter bug · litter-bug

informal A person who tends to drop litter and not clean it up. […] I mean I'm sittin' here, on the Group W bench, 'cause you want to know if I'm moral enough to join the army, burn women, kids, houses and villages, after being a litterbug
Similar: litter lout

Translations

Every language

noun person who drops litter

中文	垃圾蟲 /垃圾虫 lājīchóng
Deutsch	Schmutzfink

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Cite this

MLA

"litterbug." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/litterbug. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

litterbug. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/litterbug

Chicago

"litterbug." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/litterbug.

BibTeX

@misc{litterbug_2026,
  title = {litterbug},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/litterbug},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}