1. \Flea\, v. t. [See {Flay}.]
   To flay. [Obs.]
   
         He will be fleaced first And horse collars made of's
         skin.                                    --J. Fletcher.
   
   

2. \Flea\, n. [OE. fle, flee, AS. fle['a], fle['a]h; akin to
   D. ?, OHG. fl?h, G. floh, Icel. fl?, Russ. blocha; prob. from
   the root of E. flee. ? 84. See {Flee}.] (Zo["o]l.)
   An insect belonging to the genus Pulex, of the order
   Aphaniptera. Fleas are destitute of wings, but have the power
   of leaping energetically. The bite is poisonous to most
   persons. The human flea ({Pulex irritans}), abundant in
   Europe, is rare in America, where the dog flea ({P. canis})
   takes its place. See {Aphaniptera}, and {Dog flea}. See
   Illustration in Appendix.
   
   {A flea in the ear}, an unwelcome hint or unexpected reply,
      annoying like a flea; an irritating repulse; as, to put a
      flea in one's ear; to go away with a flea in one's ear.
   
   {Beach flea}, {Black flea}, etc. See under {Beach}, etc.
   
   

David at the cave of Adullam thus addressed his persecutor Saul (1 Sam. 24:14): "After whom is the king of Israel come out? after whom dost thou pursue? after a dead dog, after a flea?" He thus speaks of himself as the poor, contemptible object of the monarch's pursuit, a "worthy object truly for an expedition of the king of Israel with his picked troops!" This insect is in Eastern language the popular emblem of insignificance. In 1 Sam. 26:20 the LXX. read "come out to seek my life" instead of "to seek a flea."