caterpillar

English

A caterpillar—the larva of a butterfly or moth.

Alternative forms

• caterpiller (archaic)

Etymology

From Middle English catirpel, catirpeller, probably from Old Northern French catepeluse (Modern French chatte + pileuse (“hairy cat”)), from Late Latin catta + pilōsa. The sense "rapacious, extortionate person" arose by association with obsolete piller (“plunderer”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkætəˌpɪlə/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈkætɚˌpɪlɚ/, /ˈkætəˌpɪlɚ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

caterpillar (plural caterpillars)

2. The larva of a butterfly or moth; leafworm.

   The bird just ate that green caterpillar.

   • 2003, Margaret Atwood, Oryx and Crake, Virago Press (2013), page 46:

     A caterpillar is letting itself down on a thread, twirling slowly like a rope artist, spiralling towards his chest. It’s a luscious, unreal green, like a gumdrop, and covered with tiny bright hairs.

3. A vehicle with a caterpillar track; a crawler.
4. (mathematics) A set of subtrees of a tree.
5. (obsolete) A rapacious, extortionate person preying upon the community.
   • 1595 December 9 (first known performance), William Shakespeare, “The life and death of King Richard the Second”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iii], page 33:

     Bristow Castle, which they say is held
     By Busbie, Bagot, and their Complices,
     The Caterpillers of the Commonwealth,
     Which I haue sworne to weed, and plucke away.

Derived terms

• alfalfa caterpillar
• black swallowtail caterpillar
• caterpillar catcher
• Caterpillar Club
• caterpillar eater
• caterpillared
• caterpillar fungus
• caterpillar hunter
• caterpillarization
• caterpillarize
• caterpillarlike
• caterpillar roll
• caterpillar searcher
• caterpillar skiing
• caterpillar track
• caterpillar tree
• Christmas caterpillar
• eastern tent caterpillar
• forest caterpillar hunter
• hog caterpillar
• looper caterpillar
• monarch caterpillar
• Polyphemus caterpillar
• processionary caterpillar
• pseudocaterpillar
• puss caterpillar
• red-humped caterpillar
• saddleback caterpillar
• salt-marsh caterpillar
• sea caterpillar
• slug caterpillar
• tent caterpillar
• vegetable caterpillar
• woolly bear caterpillar
• zebra caterpillar

Translations

larva of a butterfly

• Adyghe: пкӏэшъэхъу (pkʼɛŝɛꭓʷu)
• Afrikaans: ruspe (af)
• Albanian: zek, vemje (sq) f
• Arabic: يَرَقَة f (yaraqa), دُودَة الْفَرَاشَة f (dūdat al-farāša)

  Hijazi Arabic: يَرَقَة f (yaraga)

• Armenian: թրթուր (hy) (tʻrtʻur)
• Assamese: পলু (polu), বিছা (bisa)
• Aymara: laqatu (ay)
• Azerbaijani: tırtıl (az)
• Banjarese: hulat
• Basque: har, beldar
• Belarusian: ву́сень m (vúsjenʹ)
• Bengali: শুঁয়াপোকা (bn) (śũẏapōka)
• Brunei Malay: ulat bulu, giuk bulu
• Bulgarian: гъсе́ница (bg) f (gǎsénica)
• Burmese: ပိုးတောင့်တဲ (my) (pui:taung.tai:)
• Catalan: eruga (ca) f
• Cebuano: til-as
• Cherokee: ᏍᎪᏯ ᎠᏁᏍᎩᎸᎥᏍᎩ (sgoya anesgilvvsgi)
• Chichewa: mbozi
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 毛毛蟲 / 毛毛虫 (mou⁴ mou⁴ cung⁴), 毛蟲 / 毛虫 (mou⁴ cung⁴)

  Mandarin: 毛毛蟲 / 毛毛虫 (zh) (máomáochóng), 毛蟲 / 毛虫 (zh) (máochóng)

• Chuukese: muun
• Chuvash: лӗпӗш хурчӗ (lĕp̬ĕš hurč̬ĕ)
• Classical Syriac: ܡܫܘܛܐ m (māšōṭā)
• Cornish: pryv del m, kath vlewek f (hairy)
• Czech: housenka (cs) f
• Danish: larve c, kålorm c
• Dutch: rups (nl) f
• Esperanto: raŭpo (eo)
• Estonian: tõuk (et), röövik
• Faroese: ormvera f
• Finnish: perhostoukka (fi)
• French: chenille (fr) f
• Friulian: ruie f
• Galician: eiruga (gl) f, burgo m
• Georgian: მუხლუხი (muxluxi)
• German: Raupe (de) f
• Greek: κάμπια (el) f (kámpia)

  Ancient: κάμπη f (kámpē)

• Gujarati: ઇયળ f (iyaḷ)
• Haitian Creole: chini
• Hebrew: זַחַל (he) m (zakhal)
• Hindi: इल्ली (hi) f (illī), पोका (hi) m (pokā)
• Hungarian: hernyó (hu)
• Icelandic: lirfa (is)
• Ido: raupo (io)
• Indonesian: ulat bulu, ulat (id)
• Ingrian: puutoukka
• Irish: bolb m
• Italian: bruco (it) m
• Japanese: 毛虫 (ja) (けむし, kemushi) (hairy), 芋虫 (ja) (いもむし, imomushi) (hairless)
• Jarai: hlăt
• Javanese: uler (jv)
• Kannada: ಕಂಬಳಿಹುಳ (kn) (kambaḷihuḷa)
• Kazakh: жұлдызқұрт (jūldyzqūrt), қырықбуын (qyryqbuyn)
• Khmer: ក្រា (km) (kraa), ដង្កូវ (km) (dɑngkəw)
• Kikuyu: kĩgunyũ class 7, kĩgunyarĩrĩ class 7 (hairy one)
• Korean: 모충(毛蟲) (mochung), 애벌레 (ko) (aebeolle)
• Kyrgyz: көпөлөк курту (köpölök kurtu), малак (malak)
• Lak: янначчуччу (aˤnnač:uč:u)
• Lao: ໂຕດ້ວງ (tō dūang), ຕົວບົ້ງ (tūa bong), ບຸ້ງ (bung), ດ້ວງ (dūang)
• Latin: ērūca f, ūrīca f, campē f, (Late) dolba f
• Latvian: kāpurs m
• Limburgish: roeps (li) m
• Lingala: mombínzó
• Lithuanian: vikšras m
• Low German: Ruup (nds) f

  Dutch Low Saxon: Riepse f

• Lutuv: ziyziypa
• Luxembourgish: Raup m
• Macedonian: гасеница f (gasenica)
• Malagasy: fanday (mg)
• Malay: beluncas
• Malayalam: കമ്പിളിപ്പുഴു (ml) (kampiḷippuḻu), ശലഭപ്പുഴു (śalabhappuḻu)
• Maltese: xagħat m
• Manchu: ᠯᡠᡴᡠ (luku)
• Manx: braddag m
• Maori: torongū, tōtorongū, whē, mokamoka, torongū
• Marathi: अळी (aḷī)
• Mi'kmaq: engejit anim
• Mongolian:

  Cyrillic: төөлүүр хорхой (töölüür xorxoj), жаран хөлт (žaran xölt)

• Navajo: wódítłʼooí, chʼosh ditłʼooí, wóshiiyishí (if not hairy)
• Norman: (Jersey) carpéleuse f, (Guernsey) catte f, (Continental Normandy) carpélouose f, (Sark) katpwölör f
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: larve (no) m

• Occitan: eruga (oc) f
• Old English: trēowwyrm m
• Ottoman Turkish: طرتیل (tırtıl)
• Persian: کرم صدپا (kerm-e sadpâ)
• Picard: carplute m
• Plautdietsch: Krupa m
• Polish: gąsienica (pl) f, licha f, liszka (pl) f
• Portuguese: lagarta (pt) f
• Punjabi: ਸੁੰਡ (pa) m (suṇḍ), ਸੁੰਡੀ (pa) f (suṇḍī)
• Quechua: sika, kuru
• Romanian: omidă (ro) f
• Romansch: rasulauna f
• Russian: гу́сеница (ru) f (gúsenica)
• S'gaw Karen: သံ (thee)
• Sardinian: ruga f
• Scots: oobit
• Scottish Gaelic: burras (gd) m, bratag (gd) f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: гу̏сеница f, (Ijekavian) гу̏сјеница f

  Roman: gȕsenica (sh) f, (Ekavian) gȕsjenica (sh) f

• Sicilian: campa (scn) f, papici m
• Slovak: húsenica (sk) f
• Slovene: gosenica (sl) f
• Spanish: oruga (es) f, cuncuna (es) f (Chile)
• Sundanese: hileud (su)
• Swahili: kiwavi (sw) class 7/8
• Swedish: fjärilslarv c, mallarv c (of a moth specifically)
• Tajik: кирмак (kirmak)
• Tamil: கம்பளிப்பூச்சி (ta) (kampaḷippūcci)
• Telugu: గొంగళిపురుగు (te) (goṅgaḷipurugu)
• Thai: หนอนผีเสื้อ (nɔ̌ɔn pǐi-sʉ̂ʉa), ด้วง (th) (dûuang), บุ้ง (th) (bûng) (especially hairy), ร่าน (th) (râan)
• Tibetan: འབུ་སྤུ་ཟོག ('bu spu zog)
• Turkish: tırtıl (tr)
• Turkmen: gurçuk
• Udi: тыртыр (tərtər)
• Ukrainian: гу́сениця f (húsenycja), гу́сінь f (húsinʹ)
• Urdu: سنڈی f (sunḍī), پوکا m (pokā)
• Uyghur: تۈكلۈك قۇرت (tüklük qurt)
• Uzbek: qurt (uz), kapalak qurti
• Vietnamese: sâu (vi), sâu róm (vi), sâu bướm
• Vilamovian: raojp f
• Volapük: jönul (vo), (diminutive) jönulil
• Walloon: halene (wa) f
• Welsh: lindysyn m, Siani flewog f (hairy)
• Yiddish: שלייערל f (shleyerl), ^{(please verify)} רויפּע f (roype)
• Yoruba: wùkúwùkú
• Zazaki: kermık

vehicle with a caterpillar track

• Bulgarian: вери́жен автомоби́л m (verížen avtomobíl)
• Catalan: eruga (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 履帶式車輛 / 履带式车辆 (lǚdàishì chēliàng)

• Esperanto: ĉenbendo, raŭpo (eo)
• Finnish: telaketjutraktori, (informally) katepillari
• German: Raupe (de) f, Raupenfahrzeug (de) n
• Greek: ερπυστριοφόρος ελκυστήρας m (erpystriofóros elkystíras)
• Hungarian: hernyótalpas traktor, lánctalpas jármű
• Japanese: キャタピラ (kyatapira), 無限軌道 (ja) (むげんきどう, mugen kidō)
• Macedonian: гасеничар m (gaseničar)
• Polish: pojazd gąsienicowy m
• Portuguese: veículo com lagartas m
• Romanian: șenilă (ro) f
• Russian: гу́сеничный тра́ктор m (gúseničnyj tráktor)
• Spanish: oruga (es) f, tractor de oruga m
• Swahili: katapila
• Swedish: caterpillar (sv) c
• Turkish: paletli (tr)
• Yoruba: katakata

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Swahili: ^{(please verify)} kiwavi (sw) (nc 7/8)

Verb

caterpillar (third-person singular simple present caterpillars, present participle caterpillaring, simple past and past participle caterpillared)

1. (intransitive) To move along slowly, drawing one's body up, in the manner of a caterpillar.

See also

• pillar

Swedish

Noun

caterpillar c

1. A vehicle with caterpillar track

   Synonym: bandfordon

Declension

Declension of caterpillar

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	caterpillar	caterpillars
	definite	caterpillarn	caterpillarns
plural	indefinite	caterpillrar	caterpillrars
	definite	caterpillrarna	caterpillrarnas

References

• caterpillar in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• caterpillar in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)