incomplete metamorphosis

[ in-kuhm-pleetmet-uh-mawr-fuh-sis ]

/ ɪn kəmˈplit mɛt əˈmɔr fə sɪs /

Save This Word!

noun

insect development, as in the grasshopper and cricket, in which the change is gradual and characterized by the absence of a pupal stage.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

Also called im·per·fect met·a·mor·pho·sis,

[im-pur-fikt met-uh-mawr-fuh-sis] /ɪmˈpɜr fɪkt mɛt əˈmɔr fə sɪs/ hemimetabolism .

Origin of incomplete metamorphosis

First recorded in 1770–75

In the meantime, most of the detailed studies are incomplete in one way or another.
New York’s Conservative Fracking Ban|Jay Michaelson|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Metamorphosis is running at Lincoln Center, 63rd Street and 9th Avenue, until January 11, 2015.
How the Circus Got a Social Conscience|Justin Jones|November 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I speak here to warn people that the facts presented in the opera are incomplete and distorted.
Rudy Giuliani: Why I Protested ‘The Death of Klinghoffer’|Rudy Giuliani|October 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Was what happened to the Central Park Five completely wrong, or simply incomplete?
The Myth of the Central Park Five|Edward Conlon|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST

As a portrait of childhood in America, it is incomplete enough to be irresponsible.
Black 'Boyhood' Is Always Black First, Boy Later|Teo Bugbee|August 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
An octave coupler without such extension is incomplete and is no more honest than a stop which only goes down to Tenor C.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building|George Laing Miller
He said it because his sentence sounded otherwise suspiciously incomplete.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
Here ends Chaucer's portion of the translation, in the middle of an incomplete sentence, without any verb.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems|Geoffrey Chaucer
This sentence is incomplete; the translator has missed the line—'Et qu'ele a sa vie perdue.'
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems|Geoffrey Chaucer
Every contract on a negotiable note is incomplete and revocable until its delivery.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman|Albert Sidney Bolles