monarch butterfly

noun

: a large migratory American butterfly (Danaus plexippus) that has orange-brown wings with black veins and borders and a larva that feeds on milkweed

Illustration of monarch butterfly

Examples of monarch butterfly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

There were a little more than 9,000 monarch butterflies tallied in an annual winter count, according to the Xerces Society of Invertebrate Conservation, down from about 200,000 in each of the last three years. —Luke Harold, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 May 2025

At the same time, the population of western monarch butterflies has seen a decline. —Jennifer Borresen, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2025

The number of monarch butterflies spending the winter in the western United States has dropped to its second-lowest mark in nearly three decades as pesticides, diminishing habitat and climate change take their toll on the beloved pollinator. —CBS News, 4 Feb. 2025

And in December 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed adding the beloved monarch butterfly to the endangered species list. —USA Today, 16 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1890, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for monarch butterfly

• canaliculi
• dwi
• micronuclei
• oversimplify
• abscissae
• alibi
• alkali
• alumni
• amoebae
• amplify
• annuli
• beautify

Kids Definition

monarch butterfly

noun

: a large orange and black American butterfly that migrates in large numbers in the spring and fall and whose larva feeds on milkweed