オンブバッタ

オ

ン

ブ

バ

ッ

タ

Meanings

noun

smaller longheaded locust; Atractomorpha lata

usually written using kana alone

A species of grasshopper known for the female carrying the smaller male on her back, hence the name おんぶ (piggyback).

庭にわでオンブバッタを見みつけた。
I found a smaller longheaded locust in the garden.
オンブバッタはメスがオスをおんぶしているように見みえる。
The smaller longheaded locust looks like the female is giving the male a piggyback ride.

Kanji

負defeat, negative, -
飛fly, skip (pages), scatter
蝗locust
虫insect, bug, temper

Related words

バッタ
General term for grasshopper; オンブバッタ is a specific species.
おんぶ
Means 'piggyback ride'; the insect's name derives from this behavior.

Written forms

オンブバッタUsage100%
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling is standard for this insect name; usually written in kana.
おんぶばった
Hiragana spelling is also used, especially in children's books or informal contexts.
負飛蝗おんぶばった
Kanji spelling is rare and mainly found in older or specialized texts.
負蝗虫おんぶばった
Alternate kanji spelling; very uncommon.
負おんぶ飛蝗ばった
Kanji spelling with okurigana; extremely rare.

Etymology

The name オンブバッタ comes from おんぶ (piggyback) + バッタ (grasshopper), referring to the characteristic behavior where the smaller male rides on the female's back.