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Glite Dictionary
order Ephemeroptera

order Ephemeroptera

1 9.9
A group of insects like mayflies with thin transparent wings and young that live in water
  • noun
  • /ˈɔrdər ˌɛfɪˈmɛrəpˌtɛrə/
  • Specialized
: orden Ephemeroptera
  • Mayflies belong to the order Ephemeroptera.

Examples

  • The order Ephemeroptera is known for species whose adults live only a few hours or days.

  • Biologists study the order Ephemeroptera to understand aquatic insect life cycles.

  • Larvae of the order Ephemeroptera are important indicators of water quality in rivers and streams.

  • The order Ephemeroptera includes species that live both in water and air.

  • Mayflies belong to the order Ephemeroptera and are known for their delicate wings and short lifespan.

  • The order Ephemeroptera is remarkable because its larvae live in water, while the adults have a brief life above water.

  • Insects from the order Ephemeroptera are often observed near freshwater habitats during their mating flights.

Synonyms

Ephemeroptera
vsorder Ephemeroptera
  • Specialized
1 9.9

Water insects called mayflies with delicate bodies, long tail filaments, and very short adult lives

emphasizes transparent wings and aquatic larvae instead of tail filaments
Ephemerida
vsorder Ephemeroptera
  • Specialized
9.9

A group of insects like mayflies whose young live in water and adults live only a short time

is the same group but uses the modern taxonomic name
order Ephemerida
vsorder Ephemeroptera
  • Archaic
9.9

A former name for the group of insects known as mayflies

refers to the currently accepted taxonomic order rather than the old classification

Surface Forms

order Ephemeroptera singular
orders Ephemeroptera plural

Morphology

order + Ephemeroptera

This phrase is transparently compositional: 'order' denotes a taxonomic rank and 'Ephemeroptera' is the name of the taxon, so the combined meaning is simply the taxonomic order called Ephemeroptera (i.e. the mayflies). The construction directly follows standard noun + name patterns found across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the meaning.

Etymology

Order Ephemeroptera comes from old Greek words: ephemero meaning 'lasting a day' and ptera meaning 'wings'. Mayflies have very short adult lives, so the name creates the image of insects with 'day' wings and explains why it refers to species that live only a few hours or days.