butterfly

verb

butterflied; butterflying

transitive verb

: to split almost entirely and spread apart

a butterflied steak

butterflied shrimp

Examples of butterfly in a Sentence

Butterfly the chicken before roasting.

Recent Examples on the Web

Or butterfly or flatten chicken breasts. —Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Apr. 2026

Botanical Name: Muhlenbergia capillaris Sun Exposure: Full Beach sunflower is a Florida native that butterflies love. —Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 14 Apr. 2026

Family adventurers, take note: nestled between Tai Mo Shan and Kam Shan Country Parks, Shing Mun Reservoir is a wildlife haven where butterflies flirt, monkeys frolic, and even wild pigs make cameo appearances. —Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Feb. 2026

Some larvae settled down, plantlike, to build colonies of flower bud–like polyps, of which some went butterflying off while others stayed behind as bountifully budding polyps. —Mandy-Suzanne Wong, Longreads, 5 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1952, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing butterfly

• butterfly bush
• butterfly chair
• butterfly effect
• butterfly fish
• butterfly kiss
• butterfly knife
• butterfly valve
• butterfly weed
• cabbage butterfly
• leaf butterfly
• milkweed butterfly
• monarch butterfly
• sulphur butterfly
• tortoiseshell butterfly
• viceroy butterfly

Rhymes for butterfly

• abscissae
• adonai
• alibi
• alkali
• alumni
• amoebae
• amplify
• annuli
• beautify
• brachii
• calculi
• certify

Kids Definition

butterfly

noun

but·​ter·​fly

-ˌflī

1

: any of numerous slender-bodied day-flying insects with large often brightly colored wings compare moth

2

: a swimming stroke performed by moving both arms together in a circular motion while kicking the legs up and down

3

plural : a queasy feeling caused by nervousness

Medical Definition

butterfly

1 of 2 noun

but·​ter·​fly -ˌflī 

plural butterflies

1

plural : a feeling of hollowness or queasiness caused especially by emotional or nervous tension or anxious anticipation

2

: butterfly bandage

butterfly

2 of 2 adjective

: affecting the part of the face including the cheeks and the bridge of the nose

the typical butterfly lesion of lupus erythematosus