monarch butterfly

noun

: a large migratory American butterfly (Danaus plexippus) that has orange-brown wings with black veins and borders and a larva that feeds on milkweed

Illustration of monarch butterfly

Examples of monarch butterfly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

How to help monarch butterflies and other pollinators Everyone can take part in helping butterflies regain their population, and folks don't even need a backyard to do it. —Julia Gomez, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2025

Milkweed is a host plant for the monarch butterfly, whose numbers are declining. —Sheryl De Vore, Chicago Tribune, 3 Mar. 2025

As with the Pixar film, the bugs (and adjacent creatures) are the main characters here, from cockroaches, monarch butterflies, and praying mantises to bees, spiders, and even hermit crabs. —Ars Technica, 14 Jan. 2025

The Trinity River Audubon Center is hosting Monarch Mania, a program detailing the monarch butterfly's migration. —Tasha Tsiaperas, Axios, 17 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1890, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for monarch butterfly

• canaliculi
• dwi
• micronuclei
• oversimplify
• abscissae
• alibi
• alkali
• alumni
• amoebae
• amplify
• annuli
• beautify

Kids Definition

monarch butterfly

noun

: a large orange and black American butterfly that migrates in large numbers in the spring and fall and whose larva feeds on milkweed