firefly

3 definitions found

firefly - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  Firefly \Fire"fly`\, n.; pl. Fireflies. (Zool.)
     Any luminous winged insect, esp. luminous beetles of the
     family Lampyrid[ae].
     [1913 Webster]
  
     Note: The common American species belong to the genera
           Photinus (especially Photinus pyralis) and
           Photuris, in which both sexes are winged. The name is
           also applied to luminous species of Elaterid[ae]. See
           Fire beetle.
           [1913 Webster +PJC]

firefly - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

  firefly
      n 1: tropical American click beetle having bright luminous spots
           [syn: firefly, fire beetle, Pyrophorus noctiluca]
      2: nocturnal beetle common in warm regions having luminescent
         abdominal organs [syn: firefly, lightning bug]

firefly - Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 :

  31 Moby Thesaurus words for "firefly":
     blink, blinking, candle fly, coruscation, fire beetle, fireworm,
     glimmer, glimmering, glisten, glister, glitter, glittering,
     glowworm, lampyrid, lantern fly, lightning bug, luciferase,
     luciferin, luminophor, phosphor, scintilla, scintillation, shimmer,
     shimmering, spangle, spark, sparkle, stroboscopic light, tinsel,
     twinkle, twinkling