cicada

American  

[si-key-duh, -kah-] / sɪˈkeɪ də, -ˈkɑ- /

noun

plural

cicadas, cicadae

1. any large homopterous insect of the family Cicadidae, the male of which produces a shrill sound by means of vibrating membranes on the underside of the abdomen.

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cicada British  

/ sɪˈkɑːdə /

noun

1. any large broad insect of the homopterous family Cicadidae, most common in warm regions. Cicadas have membranous wings and the males produce a high-pitched drone by vibration of a pair of drumlike abdominal organs

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Etymology

Origin of cicada

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin cicāda

Explanation

A cicada is a large, winged insect that makes a distinctive vibrating sound. You might hear hundreds of male cicadas singing loudly on a summer night. Cicadas are often confused with locusts, which are a similar size, a little under two inches long, but are unrelated to cicadas. Depending on the species, cicadas live underground for anywhere from two to seventeen years before emerging for a few weeks of adulthood. Beyond their loud summer buzz, cicadas have a deep cultural history: Their discarded shells are a staple in traditional Chinese medicine, and they’ve been a popular food source from ancient Greece to modern-day Appalachia, where locals affectionately call them "jarflies."

Example Sentences

In lab studies, the Cicada subvariant efficiently evades immunity from a prior vaccination or infection, according to a report published by the U.S.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 20, 2026

Looking for bugs in summer turns into “The Cicada Humans.”

From Salon • Dec. 24, 2024

Cicada watchers have spotted the first insects coming out of the ground, reporting their sightings to apps such as iNaturalist and Cicada Safari.

From New York Times • Apr. 24, 2024

“The whole tree is screaming,” said Kritsky, who created a Cicada Safari app to track where the cicadas are.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 1, 2024

See! my beautiful Wasp has pounced upon the amorous Cicada, and pierced and paralyzed like the spider before him, he is being borne to a grave in that grassy bank.

From Old Farm Fairies: A Summer Campaign In Brownieland Against King Cobweaver's Pixies by McCook, Henry Christopher

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