larva
An early stage of growth for some insects and amphibians, in which after hatching from their egg, insects are wingless and resemble a caterpillar or grub, and amphibians lack limbs and resemble fish.
Other meanings
A form of a recently born or hatched animal that is quite different from its adult stage.
A preliminary stage of someone or something, before it has fully matured, especially a time of growth rather than one of performance.
A kind of
- animal
Kinds of larva
- bladder worm
- ant lion
- aphid lion
- caterpillar
- nymph
- tadpole
Related words
- larvacide
- larvagenesis
- larvicide
- larviform
- larviparous
- larvivorous
- paralarva
- postlarva
- prolarva
- mosquito larva
- larval
- larvaesque
Word history
From Latin "larva" (disembodied spirit, ghost, goblin).
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “larva” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.