lar·va

(lär′və)

n. pl. lar·vae (-vē) or lar·vas

a. The newly hatched, wingless, often wormlike form of many insects, developing into a pupa in species that undergo complete metamorphosis.

b. The six-legged immature form of a tick or mite.

2. The newly hatched, earliest form of any of various animals that undergo metamorphosis, differing markedly in appearance from the adult.

3. Roman Mythology A malevolent spirit of the dead.

[Latin lārva, specter, mask (because it acts as a specter of or a mask for the adult form).]

lar′val adj.

Word History: The word larva referring to the newly hatched form of insects before they undergo metamorphosis comes from the Latin word lārva, meaning "evil spirit, ghost, demon." The Latin word also was used to mean "a terrifying mask," such as one that might have been worn by a Roman performer in the role of such an evil spirit. In the 1600s and 1700s, scientists began to use the Latin word to describe the stage in an insect's life during which its final form is still hidden—the larval stage is a mask, so to speak, that the insect will later remove to reveal its adult appearance.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

larva

(ˈlɑːvə)

n, pl -vae (-viː)

(Zoology) an immature free-living form of many animals that develops into a different adult form by metamorphosis

[C18: (C17 in the original Latin sense: ghost): New Latin]

ˈlarval adj

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

lar•va

(ˈlɑr və)

n., pl. -vae (-vi)

1. the immature, wingless, feeding stage of an insect that undergoes complete metamorphosis.

2. any animal in an analogous immature form.

3. the young of any invertebrate animal.

[1645–55; < New Latin; Latin larva ghost, mask (akin to Lar); compare imago]

lar′val, adj.

lar·va

(lär′və)

Plural larvae (lär′vē) or larvas

1. An animal in an early stage of development that differs greatly in appearance from its adult stage. Larvae are adapted to a different environment and way of life than adults and go through a process of metamorphosis in changing to adults. Tadpoles are the larvae of frogs and toads.

2. The immature, wingless, and usually worm-like feeding form of those insects that undergo three stages of metamorphosis, such as butterflies, moths, and beetles. Insect larvae hatch from eggs, later turn into pupae, and finally turn into adults. Compare imago, nymph, pupa.

The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

larva - the immature free-living form of most invertebrates and amphibians and fish which at hatching from the egg is fundamentally unlike its parent and must metamorphose

animal, animate being, beast, creature, fauna, brute - a living organism characterized by voluntary movement

ascidian tadpole - free-swimming larva of ascidians; they have a tail like a tadpole that contains the notochord

bladder worm - encysted saclike larva of the tapeworm

cercaria - tadpole-shaped parasitic larva of a trematode worm; tail disappears in adult stage

wireworm - wormlike larva of various elaterid beetles; feeds on roots of many crop plants

mealworm - the larva of beetles of the family Tenebrionidae

wiggler, wriggler - larva of a mosquito

jointworm, strawworm - larva of chalcid flies injurious to the straw of wheat and other grains

ant lion, antlion, doodlebug - the larva of any of several insects

aphid lion, aphis lion - carnivorous larva of lacewing flies

dobson, hellgrammiate - large brown aquatic larva of the dobsonfly; used as fishing bait

caseworm - insect larva that constructs a protective case around its body

caterpillar - a wormlike and often brightly colored and hairy or spiny larva of a butterfly or moth

nymph - a larva of an insect with incomplete metamorphosis (as the dragonfly or mayfly)

leptocephalus - slender transparent larva of eels and certain fishes

bot - botfly larva; typically develops inside the body of a horse or sheep or human

grub - a soft thick wormlike larva of certain beetles and other insects

polliwog, pollywog, tadpole - a larval frog or toad

Translations

يَرَقانَه

larva

larve

toukka

lirfa

larva

kūniņa

larve

larva

личинка

larv

kurtçuklârva

幼虫

larva

[ˈlɑːvə] N (larvae (pl)) [ˈlɑːviː] → larva f

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

larva

[ˈlɑː^rvə] [larvae] [ˈlɑː^rviː] (pl) n → larve f

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

larva

n pl <-e> → Larve f

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

larva

[ˈlɑːvə] n (larvae (pl)) [ˈlɑːviː] → larva

larva

(ˈlaːvə) – plural ˈlarvae (-viː) – noun

a developing insect in its first stage after coming out of the egg; a grub or caterpillar.

ˈlarval adjective

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

Nevertheless, the ants tend the Lomechusa larvae with the same care they bestow on their own young.

View in context

It would be difficult to explain why and whither ants whose heap has been destroyed are hurrying: some from the heap dragging bits of rubbish, larvae, and corpses, others back to the heap, or why they jostle, overtake one another, and fight, and it would be equally difficult to explain what caused the Russians after the departure of the French to throng to the place that had formerly been Moscow.

View in context

It is a significant fact, stated by entomologists -- I find it in Kirby and Spence -- that "some insects in their perfect state, though furnished with organs of feeding, make no use of them"; and they lay it down as "a general rule, that almost all insects in this state eat much less than in that of larvae. The voracious caterpillar when transformed into a butterfly ...

View in context

On the muddy and wet gravel-walks I found the larvae of this lampyris in great numbers: they resembled in general form the female of the English glowworm.

Certain wasp-like insects, which construct in the corners of the verandahs clay cells for their larvae, are very numerous in the neighbourhood of Rio.

View in context

According to district administration, the dengue surveillance teams have detected millions of dengue larvae at the site of under construction Rawalpindi Urology and Kidney Transplant Centre, nursery of Parks and Horticulture Authority, five mosques, three hotels, besides 241 places including homes, junkyards, eateries, and construction sites.

Rains heighten dengue threat

Fish larvae are visual predators, and development and survival can be influenced by contrast, luminosity (Pedreira, 2001; Pedreira et al., 2012), photoperiod (Villamizar et al., 2009), turbidity (Ohata et al., 2011) and color (Pedreira, 2001; Pedreira et al., 2012; Costa et al., 2013).

Accidentally catching of the catfish Lophiosilurus alexandri (Steindachner, 1876) larvae in aquariums with different colors/ Interferencia de cores de aquarios nas larvas do bagre Lophiosilurus alexandri (Steindachner, 1876) e seu tratador

Saima directed to devise an effective anti-dengue micro plan keeping in view the flaws of the last year,adding no dengue case had been detected in the new year but there was need to make a comprehensive plan for the ongoing year to prevent the spread of dengue larvae.

ADC directs to accelerate surveillance to control dengue

RAWALPINDI -- The District Health Authority found dengue larvae in 226 houses and 16 commercial outlets in the cantonment and city areas during the last one week.

As Ramazan enters its second week, Rawalpindi residents complain about expensive, substandard

RAWALPINDI -- Additional Deputy Commissioner Saima Younas Tuesday directed officials of various departments to implement SOP's regarding anti-dengue keeping in view the number of dengue larvae being found from different areas of the city.

ADC directs to implement SOP's regarding dengue

It may take several days to a few weeks before infected larvae die or stop feeding (Vasconcelos et al., 2005).

Infection with Spodoptera litura NPV Reduces Food Consumption and Weight Gain of Spodoptera litura Larvae

The Rural Development Administration set up new policies to introduce technological and legal bases for breeding the insects' larvae, the arm of the Ministry of Environment said Tuesday.

Gov't embraces insects to feed on mounds of food waste