Brewer's: Chrysalis

[ch = k]. The form which caterpillars assume before they are converted into butterflies or moths. The chrysalis is also called an aurelia, from the Latin aurum, gold. The external covering of some species has a metallic, golden hue, but others are green, red, black, etc. (Greek, chrusos, gold.)

The plural is either chrysalises or chrysalides (4 syl.).

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