Skip to content

larva

larva

noun LAHR-bah Rare
Animals & Nature Insects

Origin: From Latin larva (ghost, mask), referring to its masked or undeveloped form.

Also means

grub

Usage Note

Larva is the juvenile stage of an insect before metamorphosis. Despite ending in -a, it is feminine and its plural is regular: larvas. In informal Spanish it can be used pejoratively for a lazy or parasitic person.

Examples

"La larva se convierte en mariposa después de semanas."

Natural Translation

The larva becomes a butterfly after weeks.

Explore Spanish by topic