lightning bug
Americannoun
noun
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Etymology
Origin of lightning bug
An Americanism dating back to 1770–80
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
One fuzzy blink after another — and always just an inch from the grasp of sticky fingers — the lightning bugs begin to fill the air.
From Salon
While fireflies, or lightning bugs as they are commonly known, are considered to be a staple in the Northeast, it's also the region where many firefly species are most vulnerable to going extinct.
From Salon
But these beloved, bioluminescent insects, also known as lightning bugs, are in trouble.
From National Geographic
“The lightning bug is super cute …” — until that moment, I had thought it was a bee or butterfly — “ … but yeah, just getting more aligned with the trends in nursery.”
From New York Times
The next morning, when the storm clouds made way for sunshine, gossip sparked like lightning bugs.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
