butterfly
Americannoun
-
any of numerous diurnal insects of the order Lepidoptera, characterized by clubbed antennae, a slender body, and large, broad, often conspicuously marked wings.
-
a person who flits aimlessly from one interest or group to another.
a social butterfly.
-
(used with a plural verb) butterflies, a queasy feeling, as from nervousness, excitement, etc.
-
a racing breaststroke, using a dolphin kick, in which the swimmer brings both arms out of the water in forward, circular motions.
-
Carpentry. butterfly wedge.
-
Sculpture. an X -shaped support attached to an armature.
-
one of the swinging brackets of a butterfly table.
-
Movies. a screen of scrim, gauze, or similar material, for diffusing light.
verb (used with object)
adjective
noun
-
any diurnal insect of the order Lepidoptera that has a slender body with clubbed antennae and typically rests with the wings (which are often brightly coloured) closed over the back Compare moth
-
a person who never settles with one group, interest, or occupation for long
-
a swimming stroke in which the arms are plunged forward together in large circular movements
-
commerce the simultaneous purchase and sale of traded call options, at different exercise prices or with different expiry dates, on a stock exchange or commodity market
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of butterfly
First recorded before 1000; Middle English boterflye, Old English buttorflēoge; equivalent to butter + fly 1
Explanation
A butterfly is a flying insect with a small body and large, often colorful wings. Some gardeners plant specific flowers that attract butterflies. Butterflies are closely related to moths, which also have wings that are large in proportion to their bodies and antennae. A butterfly is distinctive because of its relatively large size and lovely, patterned wings. After hatching, they start as caterpillars, and eventually build a chrysalis, inside of which they transform into — and emerge as — a butterfly. The origin of butterfly isn't certain, though it may come from some butterflies' pale yellow color.
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.
See Examples For:
Thatcher, his latest anointed icon, fares no better than a butterfly pinned to his mood board.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
During each solar cycle, sunspots form a "butterfly pattern."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
A butterfly charity says the UK could be set for a "bumper" year of the insects as it launches its annual appeal for the public to count them.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
She said the long-term fall in butterfly populations, dating back to the 1970s, had been driven by their habitats being destroyed or degraded.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
A large butterfly, gray and blue, landed on the deck, and Gelifen launched himself after it.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
Andy Hadley, BCP Council's lead for climate response, environment and energy, said local habitats were important for a variety of butterflies and moths.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
Butterfly Conservation's Kate Merry said it was too early to know whether recent warm weather would result in a strong year for butterflies.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
Since then, however, she had been "encouraged" by initiatives such as No Mow May, which encourages people to let grassy areas grow wild, increasing the places for butterflies to feed and breed.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
Fox said he hoped thousands of people would get involved in the Big Butterfly Count, external to record the number of butterflies seen in 15 minutes.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
My skin turns clammy and my stupid butterflies slap at my insides again.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
We especially enjoyed the chunky guacamole served with crispy pork belly, the yellowfin tuna tostados served with a pepita salsa matcha, and the butterflied bronzino served with a tomato avocado salsa and house-made tortillas.
From Salon ● Feb. 2, 2026
Mine arrived butterflied with the head on — a beautiful fish, and far too big for just the two of us to finish in one go.
From Salon ● Dec. 4, 2025
Then there’s butterflied branzino, one side painted red, the other green, with sauces coaxed from guajillo mayonnaise and tomatillo and serrano, respectively.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 30, 2022
Instead, she butterflied a pork belly and rolled it around a pork loin, fat side out.
From New York Times ● Sep. 21, 2021
Through the open doorway, I caught a glimpse of line after line of cattle carcasses, butterflied with their ribs exposed like spread fingers.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
Our solution came in a well-tested technique for evenly roasting chickens: spatchcocking, or butterflying, which involves cutting out and discarding a bird’s backbone so it can be spread open and flattened.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 19, 2023
For some butterfly watchers, even a gentle netting is too disturbing, and they advocate butterflying with special binoculars that feature a short focal point.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 9, 2016
Jazmin starts by butterflying a chicken thigh with a deft stroke of her knife.
From Salon ● May 21, 2012
Every year sees the appearance of fictional contrivances that pause briefly as larvae in book form before butterflying their way onto the screen.
From Time Magazine Archive
If you were to watch him at work, you'd see that in the process of butterflying chicken breasts, he'll almost automatically run his knife across his sharpening tool every 15 or 20 seconds.
From The Perdue Chicken Cookbook by Perdue, Mitzi
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.
