Cacoon or Cocoon? Which is correct?

Vocabulary / By

The proper spelling of the word that refers to the silky case surrounding a caterpillar before it becomes a butterfly is “cocoon.” Cocoon can also be used as a verb meaning to envelop someone or something. Cacoon is also a word, but people use it less frequently, as it is the term for a large tropical bean found in the West Indies.

Cocoon Definition (Noun)

A cocoon is a silky case that surrounds a pupa. A pupa is an insect in the form between a larva and an adult. An example that most people are familiar with is the butterfly.

Butterflies begin their lives as eggs, which hatch into caterpillars. Then, caterpillars spin a cocoon around themselves as they become pupa. After maturing inside the cocoon, the insect emerges from the cocoon as a butterfly.

An example of how to use “cocoon” in a sentence is: Before the caterpillar turned into a moth, it spun a cocoon out of silk.

Is a Cocoon the Same as a Chrysalis?

While many people use the words cocoon and chrysalis interchangeably, there is a slight difference in definition. The chrysalis is technically only reserved for a butterfly in its pupal stage, while a cocoon is spun by moth caterpillars, not butterfly caterpillars.

Cocoon Definition (Verb)

Cocoon can also function as a verb. This verb draws a similar meaning to the noun form of the word. To cocoon is to wrap around or envelop someone or something. The term is often associated with a context of comfort and protection, just as a cocoon protects a pupa.

An example of how to use “cocoon” as a verb in a sentence is: The blanket cocooned around her and kept her warm from the chill of the winter wind.

To cocoon can also mean to stay at home and not meet a lot of people.

Cacoon Definition

Cacoon is another term for the snuffbox bean (Fevillea cordifolia) that is popular in the West Indies. Europeans named the plant the snuffbox bean because the beans it produces look like old boxes used for carrying snuff tobacco.

Here is an example of how to use cacoon in a sentence: The farmers harvested the cacoon from the vine.

What is the Synonym of Cocoon?

Cocoon has many synonyms. However, there can be a subtle difference in the usages, such as the distinction between chrysalis and cocoon.

Some popular synonyms of “cocoon” are:

Pupa
Pod
Chrysalis
Covering
Some synonyms of “cocoon” (as a verb) are:

Wrap
Protect
Swaddle
Bundle
Swathe
Pad

Conor
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