熊虫

Japanese

Kanji in this term
熊	虫
くま Grade: 4	むし Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Alternative spelling
熊蟲 (kyūjitai)

Etymology

Partial calque of English water bear. By surface analysis, 熊(くま) (kuma, “bear”) + 虫(むし) (mushi, “bug”).

Noun

熊(くま)虫(むし) or 熊虫(クマムシ) • (kumamushi)

tardigrade, water bear (Tardigrada)
Synonym: 緩(かん)歩動(ぽどう)物(ぶつ) (kanpo dōbutsu)

Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as クマムシ (kumamushi).

Derived terms

真(しん)熊(くま)虫(むし) (shinkumamushi, “eutardigrade”)
異(い)熊(くま)虫(むし) (ikumamushi, “heterotardigrade”)