The cicada has represented insouciance since antiquity.
Source: tatoeba (464134)
Cicada
/sɪˈkeɪ.də/
Synonyms for "cicada" (9 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: cicala, cicadas, cricket, grasshopper, harvest fly.
- Sentence evidence is available for cicada, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from wiktionary, wordnet, derived_reverse, opengloss, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "cicada".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "cicada"
Keep "cicada" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "cicada" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "cicada", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "cicada" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
4 entriesMore specific
3 entriesannual cicadasdog-day cicadasperiodical cicadas
Collocations
5 entriescicada exoskeletoncicada nymphscicada songdog day cicadasperiodical cicadas
Inflections
1 entriesDerivations
3 entriesTranslations
91 translations across 72 languages.
Afrikaans
1 entries- sonbesie noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Ainu
1 entries- ヤキ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Albanian
1 entries- gjinkallë noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Ancient Greek
1 entries- τέττιξ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Arabic
1 entries- زِيز noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Armenian
2 entries- կնճիթավոր ճպուռ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- ցիկադա noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Assamese
1 entries- জিলী noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Belarusian
1 entries- цыка́да noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Bengali
1 entries- উচ্চিংড়ে noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Bulgarian
2 entries- жътвар noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- цикада noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Burmese
1 entries- ပုစဉ်းရင်ကွဲ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Catalan
1 entries- cigala noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Cebuano
1 entries- gangis noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Chepang
1 entries- लीर् noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Cherokee
1 entries- ᎶᎶ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Chinese Mandarin
2 entries- 知了 noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- 蟬 /蝉 noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Czech
1 entries- cikáda noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Danish
1 entries- cikade noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Dutch
1 entries- cicade noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Esperanto
1 entries- cikado noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Estonian
2 entries- tirt noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- tsikaad noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Finnish
1 entries- laulukaskas noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
French
1 entries- cigale noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Friulian
1 entries- ciale noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Galician
4 entries- cantariña noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- cantaruxa noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- carricanta noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- chicharra noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
German
1 entries- Zikade noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Greek
1 entries- τζιτζίκι noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Hindi
4 entries- झीँगुर noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- झींगुर noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- शलभ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- सिकाडा noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Hungarian
1 entries- kabóca noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Ilocano
1 entries- andidit noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Indonesian
1 entries- tonggeret noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Italian
1 entries- cicala noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Japanese
2 entries- セミ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- 蝉 noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Javanese
1 entries- tonggèrèt noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Khmer
1 entries- រៃ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Korean
2 entries- 매미 noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- 쓰르라미 noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Lao
1 entries- ຈັກຈັ່ນ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Latin
1 entries- cicāda noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Latvian
1 entries- cikāde noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Lithuanian
1 entries- cikada noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Macedonian
1 entries- цикада noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Malagasy
1 entries- jorery noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Malay
1 entries- reriang noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Malayalam
1 entries- ചീവീട് noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Manchu
1 entries- ᠪᡳᠶᠠᠩᠰᡳᡴᡡ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Mirandese
1 entries- checharra noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Mudburra
1 entries- nirrungarda noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Māori
1 entries- tātarakihi noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Navajo
1 entries- wóóneeshchʼįįdii noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Norwegian Bokmål
1 entries- sikade noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Occitan
1 entries- cigala noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Old Armenian
1 entries- ճպուռն noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Pangasinan
1 entries- andirit noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Persian
1 entries- زنجره noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Polish
1 entries- cykada noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Portuguese
1 entries- cigarra noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Punjabi
1 entries- ਬੀਂਡਾ noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Romanian
2 entries- cicadă noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- cicoare noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Russian
1 entries- цика́да noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Serbo-Croatian
4 entries- cikada noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- cvrčak noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- цврчак noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- цикада noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Slovak
1 entries- cikáda noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Slovene
1 entries- škržat noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Spanish
3 entries- chicharra noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- chicharra) noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- coyuyo noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Swedish
1 entries- cikada noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Tagalog
2 entries- kuliglig noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
- kulilis noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Thai
1 entries- จักจั่น noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Turkish
1 entries- ağustos böceği noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Ukrainian
1 entries- цика́да noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Unami
1 entries- pasalànkè noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Vietnamese
1 entries- ve sầu noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Volapük
1 entries- zikad noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Zhuang
1 entries- bid noun (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera)
Sample sentences
13 total sentences available.
Will you shut up, hellish cicada?
Source: tatoeba (3381694)
I think it's a cicada.
Source: tatoeba (3825729)
The cicada nymph was caught in a spider web, grew wings and flew away.
Source: tatoeba (6563250)
Showing 4 of 13 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "cicada"?
Closest matches include cicala, cicadas, cricket, grasshopper, harvest fly.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "cicada"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.