fat body
Britishnoun
-
a mass of fatty tissue in insects, used as an energy source during hibernation and metamorphosis
-
a similar tissue mass in amphibians and reptiles
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.
Varroa mites weaken bees by feeding on their fat body tissue, an essential organ that supports immune function, metabolism, and energy storage.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 20, 2026
Testing the technique in fruit flies, the researchers found that 51 proteins voyaged from the animals’ muscles to their heads and 269 moved from the fat body, the insects’ main energy storehouse, to their legs.
From Science Magazine ● May 22, 2024
“People pay me for my fat body — they pay me a lot of money.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2023
One of the most severe threats to honey bees over the past several decades has been Varroa destructor, a crablike parasitic mite that feeds on honey bees' fat body tissue.
From Salon ● Nov. 12, 2022
Piggy wore the remainders of a pair of shorts, his fat body was golden brown, and the glasses still flashed when he looked at anything.
From "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding
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.
