larva

American  

[lahr-vuh] / ˈlɑr və /

noun

plural

larvae

1. Entomology. the immature, wingless, feeding stage of an insect that undergoes complete metamorphosis.

2. any animal in an analogous immature form.

3. the young of any invertebrate animal.

4. Roman Antiquity. larvae, malignant ghosts, as lemures.

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larva British  

/ ˈlɑːvə /

noun

1. an immature free-living form of many animals that develops into a different adult form by metamorphosis

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larva Scientific  

/ lär′və /

plural

larvae

1. An animal in an early stage of development that differs greatly in appearance from its adult stage. Larvae are adapted to a different environment and way of life from those of adults and go through a process of metamorphosis in changing to adults. Tadpoles are the larvae of frogs and toads.

2. The immature, wingless, and usually wormlike feeding form of those insects that undergo three stages of metamorphosis, such as butterflies, moths, and beetles. Insect larvae hatch from eggs, later turn into pupae, and finally turn into adults.

3. Compare imago nymph pupa

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Other Word Forms

• larval
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of larva

First recorded in 1645–55; from New Latin; special use of Latin larva “a ghost, specter, mask, skeleton”; akin to Lares

Explanation

The immature form of many insects and amphibians is a larva. A caterpillar is one example of a larva — it has hatched from an egg and will eventually become a fully mature butterfly. You may picture a larva as a little grubby white bug, and in many cases you'd be correct. Many insects pass through a larval stage in which they resemble grubs — in fact, grubs are the larva of insects like June bugs and Japanese beetles. Other familiar larvae include tadpoles and maggots. The name, which means "evil spirit" or "terrifying mask" in Latin, comes from the idea that a larval insect's final form is hidden, or "masked."

Example Sentences

The artwork was a nonfungible token, or NFT — one of 10,000 unique, algorithm-generated 24-by-24 pixel digital images — created in 2017 by the Larva Labs collective.

From New York Times • Nov. 30, 2022

After making her Minneapolis introduction with the rapper-producer duo Lizzo & the Larva Ink, the Houston transplant first became the talk of the town with this ultra-suave hip-hop trio with an ear for off-kilter productions.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 1, 2022

“He had to do something or he would’ve gone bankrupt,” said Ilkka Larva, a sports agent whose father was part of Jokerit ownership in the 1980s.

From Los Angeles Times • May 16, 2022

The team is also going to need to figure out ways to monetize its new acquisitions, which weren’t making money for Larva Labs.

From The Verge • Mar. 11, 2022

Larva Cage, 2s. 6d., 3s., 3s. 6d., and 5s.

From Book Collecting: A Guide for Amateurs by Slater, J. Herbert (John Herbert)

Related Words

• grub
• worm