apterous

American  

[ap-ter-uhs] / ˈæp tər əs /

adjective

1. Zoology. wingless, as some insects.

2. Botany. without membranous expansions, as a stem.

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apterous British  

/ ˈæptərəs /

adjective

1. (of insects) without wings, as silverfish and springtails

2. without winglike expansions, as some plant stems, seeds, and fruits

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Other Word Forms

• apterism noun

Etymology

Origin of apterous

First recorded in 1765–75, apterous is from the Greek word ápteros wingless. See a- ⁶, -pterous

Example Sentences

Podura, pō-dū′ra, n. a genus of apterous insects—spring-tails, snow-fleas.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various

Symphyla: a group name for apterous species resembling myriapods in appearance, with functional abdominal legs and the genital openings on the last abdominal segment: regarded by some as connecting forms between insects and myriapods, e.g.

From Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology by Smith, John. B.

Moths, absence of mouth in some males; apterous female; male, prehensile use of the tarsi by; male, attracted by females; sound produced by; coloration of; sexual differences of colour in.

From The Descent of Man by Darwin, Charles

The insect is a trifle more robust than its ordinary European representatives, and it is invariably apterous.

From On the Variation of Species, with Especial Reference to the Insecta ; Followed by an Inquiry into the Nature of Genera by Wollaston, Thomas Vernon

The female is apterous, and has a dark-brown plano-convex body; it is found in the proportion of 150 to 200 to one of the male insect.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 5 "Clervaux" to "Cockade" by Various