click beetle

noun

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

Origin of click beetle

First recorded in 1860–65

Also called skipjack, snapping beetle.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for click beetle

Historical Examples of click beetle

In the books it is called a click-beetle, but it is also called a skip-jack because of the somersaults it can turn.
Little Busybodies
Jeanette Augustus Marks and Julia Moody

British Dictionary definitions for click beetle

click beetle

noun

any beetle of the family Elateridae, which have the ability to right themselves with a snapping movement when placed on their backsAlso called: snapping beetle, skipjack 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