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Front wings in beetles
Answer for the clue "Front wings in beetles ", 6 letters:
elytra
Word definitions for elytra in dictionaries
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
Word definitions in Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
1774, plural of elytron "hardened wing of an insect," from Greek elytron "sheath," from elyein "to roll round," from PIE root *wel- (3) "to turn, roll," with derivatives referring to curved, enclosing objects (see volvox ). Related: Elytroid .
WordNet
Word definitions in WordNet
n. either of the horny front wings in beetles and some other insects which cover and protect the functional hind wings [syn: wing case ] [also: elytra (pl)]
Wiktionary
Word definitions in Wiktionary
n. (plural of elytron nocap=1 English)
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Word definitions in The Collaborative International Dictionary
Elytron \El"y*tron\ (?; 277), Elytrum \El"y*trum\ (-tr?m)n.; pl. Elytra . [NL., fr. Gr. ?, fr. ? to roll round.] (Zo["o]l.) One of the anterior pair of wings in the Coleoptera and some other insects, when they are thick and serve only as a protection for ...
Usage examples of elytra.
You see, sir,--and he went on with elytra and antennae and tarsi and metatarsi and tracheae and stomata and wingmuscles and leg-muscles and ganglions,--all plain enough, I do not doubt, to those accustomed to handling dor-bugs and squash-bugs and such undesirable objects of affection to all but naturalists.
The stiff edges, being forced slightly apart by the inclination of the body, come back into contact with a sharp click, similar to that emitted by the elytra of certain beetles.