BUTTERFLY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does butterfly mean? 

• BUTTERFLY (noun)
  The noun BUTTERFLY has 2 senses:

1. diurnal insect typically having a slender body with knobbed antennae and broad colorful wings

2. a swimming stroke in which the arms are thrown forward together out of the water while the feet kick up and down

  Familiarity information: BUTTERFLY used as a noun is rare.

• BUTTERFLY (verb)
  The verb BUTTERFLY has 3 senses:

1. flutter like a butterfly

2. cut and spread open, as in preparation for cooking

3. talk or behave amorously, without serious intentions

  Familiarity information: BUTTERFLY used as a verb is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BUTTERFLY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Diurnal insect typically having a slender body with knobbed antennae and broad colorful wings

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("butterfly" is a kind of...):

lepidopteran; lepidopteron; lepidopterous insect (insect that in the adult state has four wings more or less covered with tiny scales)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "butterfly"):

brush-footed butterfly; four-footed butterfly; nymphalid; nymphalid butterfly (medium to large butterflies found worldwide typically having brightly colored wings and much-reduced nonfunctional forelegs carried folded on the breast)

ringlet; ringlet butterfly (any of various butterflies belonging to the family Satyridae)

danaid; danaid butterfly (large tropical butterfly with degenerate forelegs and an unpleasant taste)

pierid; pierid butterfly (any of numerous pale-colored butterflies having three pairs of well-developed legs)

sulfur butterfly; sulphur butterfly (any of numerous yellow or orange butterflies)

lycaenid; lycaenid butterfly (any of various butterflies of the family Lycaenidae)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A swimming stroke in which the arms are thrown forward together out of the water while the feet kick up and down

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

butterfly; butterfly stroke

Hypernyms ("butterfly" is a kind of...):

swimming stroke (a method of moving the arms and legs to push against the water and propel the swimmer forward)

Meronyms (parts of "butterfly"):

dolphin kick (a swimming kick; an up and down kick of the feet together)

• BUTTERFLY (verb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Flutter like a butterfly

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "butterfly" is one way to...):

dart; fleet; flit; flutter (move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s

Sense 2

Meaning:

Cut and spread open, as in preparation for cooking

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

butterflied shrimp

Hypernyms (to "butterfly" is one way to...):

open; spread; spread out; unfold (spread out or open from a closed or folded state)

Domain category:

cookery; cooking; preparation (the act of preparing something (as food) by the application of heat)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 3

Meaning:

Talk or behave amorously, without serious intentions

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

butterfly; chat up; coquet; coquette; dally; flirt; mash; philander; romance

Context example:

My husband never flirts with other women

Hypernyms (to "butterfly" is one way to...):

speak; talk (exchange thoughts; talk with)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "butterfly"):

wanton (engage in amorous play)

vamp (act seductively with (someone))

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

 Context examples 

The patterns help the butterflies ward off predators.

(Study reveals surprising amount of gene flow among butterfly species, National Science Foundation)

The research is one of the first ever genome studies to look at butterfly behaviour and it unlocks the secrets of evolution to help explain how new species are formed.

(Butterflies are genetically wired to choose a mate that looks just like them, University of Cambridge)

Pluto works from the inside out, transforming you similarly to the way a caterpillar becomes a butterfly.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

But it seems to me you lose sight of beauty by being so practical, that you destroy beauty like the boys who catch butterflies and rub the down off their beautiful wings.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

What looks like a red butterfly in space is in reality a nursery for hundreds of baby stars, revealed in this infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.

('Space Butterfly' Is Home to Hundreds of Baby Stars, NASA)

The great yellow butterflies drifted silently through the sunshine and lost themselves in the drowsy shadows.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

Some common ones are: • Joint pain or swelling • Muscle pain • Fever with no known cause • Fatigue • Red rashes, often on the face (also called the "butterfly rash")

(Lupus, NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)

She was a little, sharp-eyed woman, who used to wear, when she was dressed, one unchangeable cap, ornamented with some artificial flowers, and two artificial butterflies supposed to be hovering above the flowers.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

I made it like those Beth invented, a big butterfly with a fat body, and black and yellow wings, worsted feelers, and bead eyes.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) Does the patient complain of butterflies in his/her stomach, or of racing or pounding of the heart in association with nervousness?

(NPI - Complain of Butterflies, Racing or Pounding Heart, NCI Thesaurus)