as in blotch
a small area that is different (as in color) from the main part a tie having eyespots of blue on a light gray background

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of eyespot Peacock butterflies are distinguished by a series of striking eyespots on their wings, which serve to threaten or confuse potential predators. Michael Franco, New Atlas, 21 Sep. 2024 But why did some lineages evolve shell eyes rather than eyespots? Quanta Magazine, 29 Feb. 2024 First, red eyespots appear; then the amorphous bodies coalesce and darken into their ferocious adult forms. Nala Rogers, Popular Mechanics, 9 Aug. 2023 Their long hindwing tails and eyespots combine to give them a look resembling an elephant’s face. Miri Talabac, Baltimore Sun, 18 July 2023 First, Rowland and her co-author trained chicks to attack a mealworm hidden behind a paper printout of two eyespots at the end of a runway. Maddie Bender, Scientific American, 1 Jan. 2023 The 30-centimeter-long adult grows out of a larva that is little more than a sesame seed–size blob with an eyespot at one end and a band of cilia around its body. Byelizabeth Pennisi, science.org, 17 Jan. 2023 The eyespot is studded with light-sensitive proteins called channelrhodopsins. Marc Zimmer, The Conversation, 5 Aug. 2021 Some of the earliest renditions might have been a simple pit eye, a kind of pit of tissue lined with light receptors, or what scientists call an eyespot, a simple region that detects light. Leslie Nemo, Scientific American, 19 May 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for eyespot
Noun
  • Photos depict a heartbreaking sight, with Hector’s rib cage protruding through his weakened body as red blotches line his ivory and brown coat.
    TJ Macias, Miami Herald, 7 Apr. 2025
  • The butterflies themselves are nearly gone, but the ink has left three blotches down her arm.
    Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 7 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Arsenal pressed them into corners, and too often all three of PSG’s central midfielders (yellow dots) were in deep positions on the same line.
    Liam Tharme, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
  • But this reunion catalyzes their desire to connect the dots that constitute their parallel lives.
    Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 28 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • With five stores and a small online presence, Whim is just a speck in the vast retail universe.
    Ken Belson, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025
  • Having very high levels of fluoride can result in some erosion of tooth enamel, which can predispose people to tooth staining and can cause little white specks on the teeth, says Oller.
    Sherri Gordon, CLC, Parents, 11 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • The majority of these bugs and holes never find their way into the public sphere before a patch has been issued, thanks in no small part to the bug bounty programs operated by the tech giants.
    Davey Winder, Forbes.com, 30 Apr. 2025
  • Starr’s family runs a pumpkin patch and petting zoo, but Sheila is just a pet, Starr said.
    Karina Tsui, CNN Money, 30 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • For me, there’s nothing more disappointing in a carrot cake than one that is light-colored and airy like, well, cake with flecks of carrots in it.
    Carolynn Carreño, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2025
  • Plus, because of the wet look the pair have struck on, her color looks darker, too—interspersed with golden flecks and darker, acorn tones.
    Morgan Fargo, Vogue, 28 Mar. 2025

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“Eyespot.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/eyespot. Accessed 4 May. 2025.

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