measuring worm

American  

[mezh-er-ing wurm] / ˈmɛʒ ər ɪŋ ˌwɜrm /

Or measuringworm

noun

Older Use.

1. inchworm.

---

measuring worm British  

noun

1. Also called: looper.   inchworm.  the larva of a geometrid moth: it has legs on its front and rear segments only and moves in a series of loops

---

Etymology

Origin of measuring worm

An Americanism first recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

measuring worm

Kate inched over her own thoughts like a measuring worm.

From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck

The newly hatched boll worm walks like a geometrical larva or looper, a measuring worm as it was called.

From Thirty Years a Slave by Louis Hughes

And therefore the rock was named for the measuring worm, and was called Tu-tok-a-nu´-la.

From Indians of the Yosemite Valley and Vicinity Their History, Customs and Traditions by Galen Clark

The Little Doctor watched a pale green "measuring worm" loop its way hurriedly along the floor of the porch.

From Chip, of the Flying U by Charles M. Russell

Therefore the rock is called Tutokanula, the measuring worm.

From Myths and Legends of California and the Old Southwest by Katharine Berry Judson