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cutworm

American

[kuht-wurm] / ˈkʌtˌwɜrm /

noun

the larva of any of several noctuid moths, which feeds at night on the stems of young plants, cutting them off at the ground.

cutworm British

/ ˈkʌtˌwɜːm /

noun

the caterpillar of various noctuid moths, esp those of the genus Argrotis, which is a pest of young crop plants in North America

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of cutworm

First recorded in 1800–10; cut + worm

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

As an example, black cutworm caterpillars are eaten by green lacewings, among others.

From Salon • Mar. 1, 2023

My own veggie plot in the community garden is beyond the cutworm stage and now welcomes other pests.

From Washington Post • Jul. 19, 2016

One exception is a brown caterpillar named the cutworm, which has an annoying habit of biting off seedlings just above the soil line.

From Washington Post • Jul. 19, 2016

Stay out of places where bears feed in early autumn�berry patches, whitebark pine stands, mountainsides with cutworm moths.

From Time Magazine Archive

The repellant effect of bursts of ultrasonic sound is being tested in Canada against corn borer and cutworm moths.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023