jumping bean

American  

noun

1. the seed of any of certain Mexican plants of the genera Sebastiania and Sapium, of the spurge family: the movements of a moth larva inside the seed cause it to move about or jump.

---

jumping bean British  

noun

1. a seed of any of several Mexican euphorbiaceous plants, esp species of Sebastiania, that contains a moth caterpillar whose movements cause it to jerk about

---

Etymology

Origin of jumping bean

An Americanism dating back to 1885–90

Example Sentences

Ms. Manzanales makes fun of sombreros and jumping beans, yet recognizes their beauty.

From New York Times

It wasn’t trickery, but an odd twist in the natural world that creates the novelty of “Mexican jumping beans.”

From Salon

Perhaps most unexpected will be a look at how the artist worked closely with others, as he did with the painter Philip Pearlstein on an unfinished children’s book about a Mexican jumping bean.

From New York Times

Bean Dreams is a fun, simple platformer on your iPhone in which you play a Mexican jumping bean that can't stop jumping; this frees your thumbs up to only move your character left or right.

From The Verge

Mexican jumping beans and magnets are the most magical things I can recall from childhood.

From The Verge