haltere

See also: haltère

English

A fly haltere (centre)

Alternative forms

• halter

Etymology

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.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈhæltɪə/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈhæltɪɹ/
• plural halteres pronounced IPA^(key): /hælˈtɪɹiːz/

Noun

haltere (plural halteres)

1. (entomology) 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.
   • 2022, Thomas Halliday, Otherlands, Penguin, published 2023, page 166:

     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

small knobbed structure

• Dutch: halter (nl) m, kolfje (nl) n
• French: balancier (fr) m
• German: Haltere f, Schwingkölbchen n
• Italian: bilanciere (it) m
• Portuguese: balancin m, haltere (pt)
• Romansch: ballantschera f
• Russian: жужжа́льце (ru) n (žužžálʹce)
• Spanish: halterio m

Anagrams

• Leather, Tar Heel, Tarheel, leather, lethera

Portuguese

haltere

Alternative forms

• halter

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ἁλτῆρες (haltêres, “a type of dumbbell used in Ancient Greece”).

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /awˈtɛ.ɾi/ [aʊ̯ˈtɛ.ɾi]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /awˈtɛ.ɾi/ [aʊ̯ˈtɛ.ɾi]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /awˈtɛ.ɾe/ [aʊ̯ˈtɛ.ɾe]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /alˈtɛ.ɾɨ/ [aɫˈtɛ.ɾɨ], /alˈtɛɾ/ [aɫˈtɛɾ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /alˈtɛ.ɾɨ/ [aɫˈtɛ.ɾɨ], /alˈtɛɾ/ [aɫˈtɛɾ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /alˈtɛ.ɾɨ/ [aɫˈtɛ.ɾɨ], /alˈtɛ.ɾi/ [aɫˈtɛ.ɾi]

• Hyphenation: hal‧te‧re

Noun

haltere m (plural halteres)

1. dumbbell (a weight with two disks attached to a short bar)

   Synonym: peso

Derived terms

• halterofilia
• halterofilismo
• halterofilista

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [halˈtere]

Noun

haltere f pl

1. inflection of halteră:
   1. indefinite plural
   2. indefinite genitive/dative singular