Learn English – Infested with vs infested by

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Is there a rule regarding "infested with" and "infested by"? Which is more appropriate?

Best Answer

Both are correct, infested with has a more idiomatic usage. Insects, vermin or other nuisances may infest something. The object of the infestation (e.g., a place, a person, an animal) is infested with (or occasionally by) that nuisance. As a modifier, infested is always hyphenated with the preceding word (e.g., a rat-infested cabin).

Ngram: infested with vs infested by.

Infested with something:

  • to be contaminated with a swarm or throng of some pest. (*Typically: be ~; get ~.) All the campers are infested with lice. The dog is infested with ticks.

(McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs)

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