caddis fly
noun
: any of an order (Trichoptera) of insects with four membranous usually hairy wings, vestigial mouthparts, slender many-jointed antennae, and aquatic larvae compare caddisworm
Examples of caddis fly in a Sentence
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There was a caddis fly in the bucket, which is a type of aquatic insect, and a few tiny flies.
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Madeline Bodin, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 June 2025
Stillwater fishing can be dry-fly fishing, often for caddis flies or stillwater mayflies such as callibaetis, or, close to the shore, beetles and ants.
—Morgan Lyle, Field & Stream, 13 July 2023
Arriving in the 1980s were mayflies, stoneflies and caddis flies; stream ecologists call this trio EPT, from the orders Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Tricoptera.
—Lesley Evans Ogden, Discover Magazine, 7 Apr. 2023
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Madeline Bodin, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 June 2025
Stillwater fishing can be dry-fly fishing, often for caddis flies or stillwater mayflies such as callibaetis, or, close to the shore, beetles and ants.
—Morgan Lyle, Field & Stream, 13 July 2023
Arriving in the 1980s were mayflies, stoneflies and caddis flies; stream ecologists call this trio EPT, from the orders Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Tricoptera.
—Lesley Evans Ogden, Discover Magazine, 7 Apr. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Caddis fly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/caddis%20fly. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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