click beetle

noun

: any of a family (Elateridae) of beetles able to right themselves with a click when inverted by flexing the articulation between the prothorax and mesothorax

Examples of click beetle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While sharpshooters are the only insects known to harness superpropulsion, lots of tiny critters have mechanisms for ultrafast movement, according to Aimy Wissa, a mechanical engineer at Princeton University, who studies how click beetles launch themselves in the air without using their legs. —Jack Tamisiea, Scientific American, 28 Feb. 2023

But not many realize that click beetles living in termite mounds also light up. —Jason Daley, Smithsonian, 19 Oct. 2017

Word History

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

click beetle

noun

: any of a family of beetles that are able when turned over to flip into the air by a sudden movement that produces a distinct click