Wordwyrt

caterpillar

/ˈkætəˌpɪlə/KA-tuh-pih-lur
/ˈkætəˌpɪlɚ/KA-tuh-pih-lur

Meaninga she-cat

Common meaning: the worm-like young of a moth or butterfly

Journey through time

  1. Old Frenchchate‘a she-cat’source
  2. Middle Englishcatyrpel‘caterpillar’source
  3. Englishmeaning shiftsa she-cat → the worm-like young of a moth or butterflycaterpillar‘the worm-like young of a moth or butterfly’ · today

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

  • UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
  • No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
  • US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
  • No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Old French chate ‘a she-cat’.

Roots

  • chate Old French “a she-cat”

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