Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A caterpillar of a geometrid moth that moves by looping the body in alternate contractions and expansions.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A dropworm or measuring-worm. See looper.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Zoöl.) The larva of any geometrid moth. It progresses forward by first bringing the rear end of the body forward, forming a loop, then moving the front part of the body; called also measuring worm, measuringworm, spanner, and looper. See geometrid.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The larva of a moth of the family Geometridae.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun small hairless caterpillar having legs on only its front and rear segments; mostly larvae of moths of the family Geometridae

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From inch + worm.

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