click beetle

American

noun

any of numerous beetles of the family Elateridae, having the ability to spring up with a clicking sound when placed on their backs.

click beetle British

noun

Also called: snapping beetle. skipjack. any beetle of the family Elateridae, which have the ability to right themselves with a snapping movement when placed on their backs See also wireworm

"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

Etymology

Origin of click beetle

First recorded in 1860–65

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023