haltere
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haltere
- /ˈhæltɪə/ UK
- /ˈhæltɪɹ/ US
- /hælˈtɪɹiːz/
Where it comes from
From Ancient Greek ἁλτῆρες (haltêres, “weights held in the hand to give an impetus in leaping”). Note that in the original Greek, there seems to have been no singular for ἁλτῆρες (haltêres), and some authorities maintain that halteres is a plurale tantum, but in English entomological usage, haltere sometimes appears as a back-formation. Sometimes the singular halter is used instead, but this may lead to confusion with other, unrelated meanings of halter.
noun halteres · halter
- A small knobbed structure in some two-winged insects, one of a pair that are flapped rapidly and function as accelerometers to maintain stability in flight. Whenever the fly changes direction at an angle to the hinge, the shaking bends the halteres at their base and turns them into a gyroscope.
Translations
Every language
noun small knobbed structure
| Español | halterio |
|---|---|
| Português | balancin, haltere |
| Français | balancier |
| Deutsch | Haltere, Schwingkölbchen |
| Italiano | bilanciere |
| Русский | жужжа́льце žužžálʹce |
Talk about this word "haltere." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/haltere. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. haltere. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/haltere "haltere." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/haltere.Cite this
@misc{haltere_2026,
title = {haltere},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/haltere},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
