seventeen-year locust

seventeen-year locust
/sev"euhn teen"year'/
a cicada, Magicicada septendecim, of the eastern U.S., having nymphs that live in the soil, usually emerging in great numbers after 17 years in the North or 13 years in the South. Also called periodical cicada.
[1810-20]

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • seventeen-year locust — ☆ seventeen year locust [sev′ən tēn΄yir΄ ] n. a cicada (Magicicada septendecim) which lives underground as a larva for from thirteen to seventeen years before emerging as an adult to live in the open for a brief period …   English World dictionary

  • seventeen year locust — Cicada Ci*ca da (s[i^]*k[=a] d[.a]), n.; pl. E. {Cicadas} ( d[.a]z), L. {Cicad[ae]} ( d[=e]). [L.] (Zo[ o]l.) Any species of the genus {Cicada} or of the family {Cicadidae}. They are large hemipterous insects, with nearly transparent wings. The… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • seventeen-year locust — seventeen′ year lo′cust n. ent a cicada, Magicicada septendecim, of the eastern U.S., having nymphs that live in the soil, usu. emerging in great numbers after 17 years in the North or 13 years in the South Also called periodical cicada •… …   From formal English to slang

  • seventeen-year locust — noun Date: 1817 a cicada (Magicicada septendecim) of the United States that has in the North a life of seventeen years and in the South of thirteen years of which most is spent underground as a nymph and only a few weeks as a winged adult …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • seventeen-year locust — noun North American cicada; appears in great numbers at infrequent intervals because the nymphs take 13 to 17 years to mature • Syn: ↑periodical cicada, ↑Magicicada septendecim • Hypernyms: ↑cicada, ↑cicala • Member Holonyms: ↑Magicicad …   Useful english dictionary

  • sev|en|teen-year locust — «SEHV uhn TEEN YIHR», a cicada of the United States that requires from thirteen to seventeen years to develop from egg to adult; periodical cicada. The larva burrows underground and feeds on roots, emerging to live a short time as an adult.… …   Useful english dictionary

  • locust — [lō′kəst] n. [ME < L locusta, prob. akin to lacerta, LIZARD] 1. any of various large grasshoppers; specif., a migratory grasshopper often traveling in great swarms and destroying nearly all vegetation in areas visited 2. SEVENTEEN YEAR LOCUST… …   English World dictionary

  • locust — locustlike, adj. /loh keuhst/, n. 1. Also called acridid, short horned grasshopper. any of several grasshoppers of the family Acrididae, having short antennae and commonly migrating in swarms that strip the vegetation from large areas. 2. any of… …   Universalium

  • locust — lo•cust [[t]ˈloʊ kəst[/t]] n. 1) ent Also called short horned grasshopper any of several grasshoppers of the family Acrididae, having short antennae and commonly migrating in swarms that strip the vegetation from large areas. 2) ent any of… …   From formal English to slang

  • seventeen-yearlocust — sev·en·teen year locust (sĕvʹən tēn yîr ) n. See periodical cicada. * * * …   Universalium

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