water beetle
noun
: any of numerous oval flattened aquatic beetles (such as a diving beetle or whirligig beetle) that swim by means of their fringed hind legs which act together as oars
Examples of water beetle in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The endangered Hungerford’s crawling water beetle, for example, can live close to potato fields.
—
Byerik Stokstad, science.org, 27 June 2024
Ursula Vernon, aka T. Kingfisher, won the 2023 Hugo for best novel and found inspiration for her acceptance speech in a 2020 study about a species of water beetle that survives being swallowed alive by a frog by escaping through the frog's butt.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 23 Oct. 2023
Tallamy became an entomologist, studying insect behaviors like egg dumping, in which female insects leave their own eggs in another female’s nest, and paternal care, in which male insects such as giant water beetles carry their egg broods on their backs.
—Emily Underwood, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Sep. 2023
Normally, with 15 hours of daylight, the water beetles are up at the bottom of the ice.
—John Schandelmeier, Anchorage Daily News, 16 Apr. 2023
After witnessing his water beetle-tadpole smackdown, Dr. Valdez, too, had written it up as a note.
—Cara Giaimo, New York Times, 10 Aug. 2020
While that mind-set isn’t ironclad — the giant water beetle pheromone used on the raw oysters ($8 for two) is the real thing imported from Thailand — it’s given form to some unforgettable dishes.
—Soleil Ho, SFChronicle.com, 14 Nov. 2019
Like all insects, this edible water beetle contains significant amounts of fiber due to the chitin from their outer skeleton.
—Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 25 Oct. 2019
Spangler named the insect brychius hungerfordi, Hungerford's crawling water beetle, for his instructor at the biological station, entomologist Herbert B. Hungerford.
—Keith Matheny, Detroit Free Press, 16 July 2019
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Byerik Stokstad, science.org, 27 June 2024
Ursula Vernon, aka T. Kingfisher, won the 2023 Hugo for best novel and found inspiration for her acceptance speech in a 2020 study about a species of water beetle that survives being swallowed alive by a frog by escaping through the frog's butt.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 23 Oct. 2023
Tallamy became an entomologist, studying insect behaviors like egg dumping, in which female insects leave their own eggs in another female’s nest, and paternal care, in which male insects such as giant water beetles carry their egg broods on their backs.
—Emily Underwood, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Sep. 2023
Normally, with 15 hours of daylight, the water beetles are up at the bottom of the ice.
—John Schandelmeier, Anchorage Daily News, 16 Apr. 2023
After witnessing his water beetle-tadpole smackdown, Dr. Valdez, too, had written it up as a note.
—Cara Giaimo, New York Times, 10 Aug. 2020
While that mind-set isn’t ironclad — the giant water beetle pheromone used on the raw oysters ($8 for two) is the real thing imported from Thailand — it’s given form to some unforgettable dishes.
—Soleil Ho, SFChronicle.com, 14 Nov. 2019
Like all insects, this edible water beetle contains significant amounts of fiber due to the chitin from their outer skeleton.
—Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 25 Oct. 2019
Spangler named the insect brychius hungerfordi, Hungerford's crawling water beetle, for his instructor at the biological station, entomologist Herbert B. Hungerford.
—Keith Matheny, Detroit Free Press, 16 July 2019
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Cite this Entry
“Water beetle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/water%20beetle. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.
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