Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
dorbeetle

dorbeetle

9.9
A beetle that lives on animal dung and flies with a loud humming sound
  • noun
  • Archaic
: escarabajo pelotero
  • The loud humming flight of the dorbeetle can often be heard on warm summer evenings.

Examples

  • We spotted a dorbeetle buzzing around the edge of the meadow at dusk.

  • The dorbeetle flew past with a loud drone.

  • The dorbeetle plays an important role in recycling nutrients in many European forests.

  • I spotted a dorbeetle in the garden.

  • The loud humming flight of the dorbeetle can often be heard on warm summer evenings.

  • The dorbeetle flew past with a loud drone.

  • We spotted a dorbeetle buzzing around the edge of the meadow at dusk.

Synonyms

dung beetle
vsdorbeetle
7 4.4

A beetle that eats animal dung, rolls it into balls, and lays eggs in them

is Old World and known for flying with a droning sound
scarabaeus
vsdorbeetle
  • Literature
1 9.9

A large dung beetle that ancient Egyptians thought was sacred

is Old World and known for flying with a droning sound
tumblebug
vsdorbeetle
  • US
9.9

A beetle that rolls balls of animal dung to eat or lay eggs

is Old World and known for flying with a droning sound

Surface Forms

dorbeetle singular
dorbeetles plural

Morphology

dorbeetle = beetle (semi-transparent) = dor + beetle

The component 'beetle' signals the creature category, but 'dor' is not a productive modern English morpheme and does not transparently convey the specific subtype to learners.

Etymology

Dorbeetle comes from dor, an old word for 'dung', plus beetle, so it literally means a dung beetle. That's why a dorbeetle is a beetle that lives on dung and often flies with a loud, droning sound.