witchety grub en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Etymology
From witchety + grub, a partial calque of some Pama-Nyungan language (compare Arabana mako witjuti (“witchety grub”, from mako (“grub”) + witjuti (“witchety bush”))).
Meanings
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(Australia) The large, white, wood-eating larvae of several moths and beetles, especially the species Endoxyla leucomochla, traditionally eaten by Aboriginals in the Australian desert.
I'll think of how the kids come alive walking around sandplains / reading tracks, looking for goannas, digging up witchetty grubs / collecting berries, branches of bush medicines.
2022, Meg Mooney, Northern Territory Literary Awards, page 33:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| witchetty grub | alternative | lexicographic | |
| witchety grubs | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| witjuti grub | alternative | lexicographic |