complete metamorphosis

noun

1. insect development in which egg, larval, pupal, and adult stages occur, each differing greatly in morphology.

Word History and Origins

Origin of complete metamorphosis¹

First recorded in 1840–50

Example Sentences

Like all beetles, the firefly cycles through a complete metamorphosis—hatching from its egg as a crawling larva before pupating into a mature adult.

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“I’m convinced he went through a complete metamorphosis,” retired Army Gen. Jack Keane told the Los Angeles Times in 2008.

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But her co-workers told her to expect “a complete metamorphosis when the sun went down.”

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So many species with such a wide range of incomplete to complete metamorphosis!

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I’ve made a complete metamorphosis.

Read more on The Guardian