chrysalis

Everyday

1. The hard case a caterpillar makes around itself while it changes into a butterfly. tree →
2. The stage in a butterfly's life cycle when it is inside this case (the pupa stage). tree →
3. A time of quiet change before something new appears (figurative). tree →

In the lessons

In science it is a key stage of the butterfly life cycle: egg → caterpillar (larva) → chrysalis (pupa) → adult butterfly. This big change is called complete metamorphosis. Classes often watch caterpillars turn into chrysalises and then butterflies. Phrases: inside the chrysalis, come out of the chrysalis, emerge from the chrysalis.

Examples

• The caterpillar hung upside down and made a chrysalis. tree →
• Inside the chrysalis, the caterpillar turns into a butterfly. tree →
• After two weeks the butterfly came out of its chrysalis. tree →
• A butterfly's life cycle is egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, butterfly. tree →
• Don't touch the chrysalis — it is very delicate. tree →
• The chrysalis looked like a little green jewel on the leaf. tree →

Note

Pronounced KRISS-a-liss. Plural: chrysalises (common). Butterflies make a chrysalis; moths usually make a cocoon (spun from silk) — a common confusion. «Pupa» is the scientific word for this stage for both.