hemipteran
- noun
- /ˈhɛmɪˌtɛrən/
- Specialized
:
hemíptero
- Hunting and web-building spiders showed the strongest response to structural complexity, followed by hemipterans, mites, and parasitoids.
Examples
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The garden was filled with various species of hemipterans, known for their distinctive sucking mouthparts.
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The researcher studied the life cycle of a specific hemipteran that undergoes incomplete metamorphosis.
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In addition, many invasive ants seem to rely on hemipteran husbandry.
Academic text (2010) -
They are hemipterans.
Academic text (1993) -
These insects resemble beetles somewhat but are really "true bugs," or hemipterans.
Academic text (1993) -
Farmers often struggle with hemipterans like aphids, which can damage crops by sucking plant sap.
Synonyms
1
8.1
An insect with a thin mouth that pierces and sucks fluids, like a water strider
An insect that sucks plant sap, with a long tube mouth and hard front wings at the base
An insect with a tube-like mouth that sucks plant juices and front wings partly hard, like an aphid or cicada
Surface Forms
Morphology
hemipteran = hemiptera (opaque) = hemi + pter + an
The term is specialized and scientific, making it difficult for learners to derive meaning from its components.
Etymology
Hemipteran comes from Greek parts hemi- meaning 'half' and pteron meaning 'wing', the same 'hemi-' as in hemisphere and the 'pter' you see in helicopter. That's because many of these insects have forewings that are 'half' hard and 'half' thin, so the name points to their 'half-wing' form.