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Glite Dictionary
lantern fly

lantern fly

9.3
A large tropical insect with bright colors and a long nose once thought to glow
  • noun
  • /ˈlæn.tɚn flaɪ/
translation icon : mosca farol
  • Early naturalists mistakenly thought the lantern fly could glow in the dark.

Examples

  • The lantern fly is known for its vivid colors and unusual appearance.

  • We saw a beautiful lantern fly perched on a tree during our trip to the rainforest.

  • Look at that lantern fly!

  • The lantern fly is beautiful.

  • Early naturalists mistakenly thought the lantern fly could glow in the dark.

  • The lantern fly is known for its vivid colors and unusual appearance.

  • We saw a beautiful lantern fly perched on a tree during our trip to the rainforest.

Synonyms

lantern-fly
vslantern fly
9.9

A large tropical insect with bright colors and a long snout, once thought to give light

is the same meaning but written as two separate words rather than hyphenated

Surface Forms

lantern fly singular
lantern flies plural

Morphology

lantern + fly

The compound is compositionally transparent: 'lantern' modifies 'fly', so a learner who knows 'lantern' (a light) and 'fly' (an insect) will infer it is a kind of insect associated with light or named for emitting/looking like a lantern. They may not predict precise biological features (e.g., snout-like projection), but the basic idea 'a type of fly related to lantern/light' is directly derivable from the constituents.

Etymology

Lantern fly The name lantern fly comes from a story that people long ago thought this large insect could 'glow' like a small lamp. Its bright colors and long, snout-like head made them think of a lantern, so the words lantern and fly stuck and the name still suggests 'light' today.