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
Dislodged aphids rarely find their way back up and are often devoured by spiders and ground beetles.
—
Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2025
Common insect predators in the home garden include lacewings, syrphid (flower or hover) flies, minute pirate bugs, ground beetles, and ladybeetles.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 4 Apr. 2025
According to The Guardian, entomologist Terry Erwin named a species of ground beetle found in Costa Rica in 2002 after Titanic actress Kate Winslet, calling the insect Agra katewinsletae.
—Kelli Bender, People.com, 1 Dec. 2024
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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2025
Common insect predators in the home garden include lacewings, syrphid (flower or hover) flies, minute pirate bugs, ground beetles, and ladybeetles.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 4 Apr. 2025
According to The Guardian, entomologist Terry Erwin named a species of ground beetle found in Costa Rica in 2002 after Titanic actress Kate Winslet, calling the insect Agra katewinsletae.
—Kelli Bender, People.com, 1 Dec. 2024
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
Cite this Entry
“Ground beetle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ground%20beetle. Accessed 14 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share