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tent caterpillar

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noun

any of the larvae of several moths of the genus Malacosoma, which feed on the leaves of orchard and shade trees and live colonially in a tentlike silken web.
the North American larva of M. disstria (forest tent caterpillar), which spins a dense net.

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Nearby words

  1. tensor muscle of tympanic membrane,
  2. tensorial,
  3. tent,
  4. tent 1,
  5. tent bed,
  6. tent circus,
  7. tent city,
  8. tent dress,
  9. tent fly,
  10. tent meeting

Origin of tent caterpillar

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for tent caterpillar

British Dictionary definitions for tent caterpillar

tent caterpillar

noun

the larva of various moths of the family Lasiocampidae, esp Malacosoma americana of North America, which build communal webs in trees
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