army ant
1
6.4
- noun
- /ˈɑrmi ænt/
- Specialized
:
hormiga legionaria
- Each army ant has a particular smell; some are fruity, some are musky.
- swarm of army ants
Examples
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Real army ants are both more interesting and more complex than those of story or myth.
Academic text (2003) -
A typical army ant species lives in nests underground that are built out of the living bodies of its workers.
Academic text (2003) -
Usually, you can sit beside the trails of army ants and watch for guests as the line goes by.
Academic text (2003) -
Some of the early or popular accounts of army ants are accurate, but most of them owe more to fantasizing than to observation.
Academic text (2003) -
Many of the first explorers in the New World wrote home about army ants, as have more contemporary writers, natural historians, and the like.
Academic text (2003) -
That diversity and beauty have fueled Rettenmeyer's lifelong passion for army ant guests.
Academic text (2003) -
Our mission: To look for a mysterious army ant and a rarely seen but look-alike beetle that lives in its midst.
Academic text (2003) -
Real army ants don't kill people; most of them don't even forage above ground.
Academic text (2003) -
The razor-sharp jaws of these army ants can strip a frog or a lizard to the bone in minutes.
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In the rainforest, a swarm of army ants quickly moved through the underbrush, searching for insects to eat.
Synonyms
1
9.1
A large tropical ant that moves in long lines and hunts other insects
A tropical ant that moves in large swarms to hunt other insects
A kind of army ant from Central and South America that hunts in large swarms
A large, aggressive African ant that moves in huge groups and bites hard
A type of ant that moves and hunts together in large, aggressive groups
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a nomadic ant that moves in large groups' is directly derivable from combining 'army' (a large organized group) with 'ant' (the insect): the compound describes ants that behave like an army. This is a productive, compositional noun compound pattern found across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both words would very likely infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Army ant comes from the simple image of these ants moving like an army, in long, fast lines that hunt other insects, pushing prey out of hiding. So, army ant now means a kind of ant that 'moves in large groups to hunt'.