: any of an order or suborder (Mantodea and especially family Mantidae) of large usually green insects that feed on other insects and clasp their prey in forelimbs held up as if in prayer
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Ideas The Insect Collection Kit Put together these models of a blue morpho butterfly, hercules beetle, and Chinese mantis as a fun and relaxing weeknight activity.—Mia Huelsbeck, People.com, 1 Jan. 2025 For us, our evening plans were to make the short walk to see the fire-breathing mantis at Downtown Container Park, then head over to Atomic Liquors, which was the first free-standing bar in Las Vegas, for some people-watching, a local brew and the phenomenal pan pizza.—Ryan Slattery, Travel + Leisure, 2 Sep. 2024 There's a blue morpho butterfly, a Hercules beetle, and a Chinese mantis.—Patrice J. Williams, Parents, 12 July 2024 Cannibalistic female mantises produce more eggs than mantises who don’t eat their mates, a 2016 research paper concluded.—Ben Guarino, Popular Science, 13 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for mantis
Word History
Etymology
New Latin, from Greek, literally, diviner, prophet; akin to Greek mainesthai to be mad — more at mania
: any of various large usually green insects related to the grasshoppers and cockroaches that feed upon other insects and hold their prey in the stout spiny first pair of legs
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