ground beetle

noun

: any of a large cosmopolitan family (Carabidae) of soil-inhabiting usually carnivorous often shiny black or metallic beetles commonly having fused elytra

Examples of ground beetle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Photo: Ellie Atkins A 21-year-old Potter’s drawings of a ground beetle. Lisa Wong MacAbasco, Vogue, 5 Mar. 2024 While their slimy coatings deter some would-be-predators, raccoons, opossums, snakes, moles, toads, shrews, turtles, ground beetles, and birds, such as ducks, starlings, and thrushes, devour them with gusto. Paul Richards, Field & Stream, 29 Feb. 2024 The show includes an 1887 drawing of the magnified parts of a ground beetle, a reminder of the rich natural detail that would mark her stories. J.s. Marcus, WSJ, 21 Jan. 2022 Because ground beetles are nocturnal and more active during night hours, Will typically started his sampling days just before sunset and ended them between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. In September of that year, Maddison and Sproul finished collecting and analyzing the beetle’s DNA. Praveena Somasundaram, Washington Post, 31 Mar. 2023 Potter’s scientific drawings of a ground beetle, ca. 1887. J.s. Marcus, WSJ, 21 Jan. 2022 This is perhaps the most unusual beetle in the hugely diverse Carabidae family of ground beetles. Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Apr. 2020 Natural controls of spiders, big-eyed bugs, ground beetles and a variety of parasites already in your lawn may help eliminate these turf pests. Tom MacCubbin, orlandosentinel.com, 22 June 2019 Tick off the number and species of each organism observed, such as centipedes, ground beetles, and spiders. Julie Monahan, Good Housekeeping, 9 Sep. 2015

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ground beetle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1848, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ground beetle was in 1848

Dictionary Entries Near ground beetle

Cite this Entry

“Ground beetle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ground%20beetle. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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