caddisfly

or cad·dice·fly

[ kad-is-flahy ]

noun,plural cad·dis·flies.

any of numerous aquatic insects constituting the order Trichoptera, having two pairs of membranous, often hairy wings and superficially resembling moths.

Origin of caddisfly

First recorded in 1780–90; see origin at caddisworm, fly¹

Compare caddisworm.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use caddisfly in a sentence

Every good disciple of Walton and lover of the “gentle art” knows the value of the Caddis-fly, or Water-moth, as bait.
Directions for Collecting and Preserving Insects | C. V. Riley
Like the red-throat it is also susceptible to bait, which in Montana is the "rock-worm," the larva of the caddis fly.
Favorite Fish and Fishing | James Alexander Henshall
Here is a caddis-fly now, its gauzy wings folded tentwise over its back.
The Animal World, A Book of Natural History | Theodore Wood
When the Caddis Fly felt like laying eggs, she crawled down the stalk of one of the pond plants and laid them there.
Among the Pond People | Clara Dillingham Pierson
These new treasures proved to be the larvae of the caddis fly in their stone houses.
Birds and Nature Vol. 9 No. 2 [February 1901] | Various

British Dictionary definitions for caddis fly

caddis fly

noun

any small mothlike insect of the order Trichoptera, having two pairs of hairy wings and aquatic larvae (caddis worms)

Origin of caddis fly

C17: of unknown origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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