caterpillar
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A caterpillar—the larva of a butterfly or moth.
English
Alternative forms
- caterpiller (archaic)
Etymology
From Middle English catirpel, catirpeller, probably from Old Northern French catepeluse (Modern French chatte + pileuse (“hairy cat”)), from Late Latin catta + pilōsa. The sense "rapacious, extortionate person" arose by association with obsolete piller (“plunderer”).
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈkætəˌpɪlə/
- (US) IPA(key): /ˈkætɚˌpɪlɚ/, /ˈkætəˌpɪlɚ/
Audio (US) (file)
Noun
caterpillar (plural caterpillars)
- The larva of a butterfly or moth; leafworm.
- The bird just ate that green caterpillar.
- A vehicle with a caterpillar track; a crawler.
- (mathematics) A set of subtrees of a tree.
- (obsolete) A rapacious, extortionate person preying upon the community.
- 1595 December 9 (first known performance), William Shakespeare, “The life and death of King Richard the Second”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, , page 33:
- Bristow Castle, which they say is held
By Busbie, Bagot, and their Complices,
The Caterpillers of the Commonwealth,
Which I haue sworne to weed, and plucke away.
Derived terms
- alfalfa caterpillar
- caterpillar catcher
- Caterpillar Club
- caterpillar eater
- caterpillar fungus
- caterpillar hunter
- caterpillar roll
- caterpillar searcher
- caterpillar skiing
- caterpillar track
- caterpillar tree
- Christmas caterpillar
- eastern tent caterpillar
- forest caterpillar hunter
- hog caterpillar
- looper caterpillar
- monarch caterpillar
- processionary caterpillar
- pseudocaterpillar
- puss caterpillar
- red-humped caterpillar
- saddleback caterpillar
- salt-marsh caterpillar
- sea caterpillar
- slug caterpillar
- tent caterpillar
- vegetable caterpillar
- woolly bear caterpillar
- zebra caterpillar
Translations
larva of a butterfly
|
vehicle with a caterpillar track
|
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Verb
caterpillar (third-person singular simple present caterpillars, present participle caterpillaring, simple past and past participle caterpillared)
- (intransitive) To move along slowly, drawing one's body up, in the manner of a caterpillar.
See also
Swedish
Noun
caterpillar c
- A vehicle with caterpillar track
- Synonym: bandfordon
Declension
| Declension of caterpillar | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | |||
| Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
| Nominative | caterpillar | caterpillarn | caterpillrar | caterpillrarna |
| Genitive | caterpillars | caterpillarns | caterpillrars | caterpillrarnas |