a young wingless often wormlike form (as a grub or caterpillar) that hatches from the egg of many insects
the larva looked ugly, but it was destined to hatch into a beautiful butterfly
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Recent Examples of larvaThe screwworm is actually a fly larva that eats living flesh instead of dead material.—
Jeffrey Collins,
Fortune,
9 June 2026 There are no insecticides that will control the larva of this inconspicuous grayish-brown moth.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
The Spruce,
17 June 2026 White larva may also be visible within the skin lesions, Hohenhaus said.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
11 June 2026 People often submerse themselves in water to ease their suffering, allowing the worm to release larva that then infect others.—
Theresa Gaffney,
STAT,
2 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for larva
Recent Examples of Synonyms for larva
nymph
Noun
Achilles discovered among the Daughters of Lycomedes depicts a Greek mythological scene during the Trojan War in which the hero Achilles has been hidden by his mother, the sea nymph Thetis, on the island of Skyros.
—
Maximilíano Durón,
ARTnews.com,
2 July 2026
One claims that the area’s name originates from the love story between the demigod Hercules and a nymph named Amalfi.