How to use mayfly in a sentence

11 example sentences · noun

Mayfly means any of the many fragile insects of the order Ephemeroptera that develop in fresh water and live very briefly as winged adults. Example: “While some animals take months to reproduce, mayfly need just one perfect day.”

Examples of mayfly by meaning

nounAny of the many fragile insects of the order Ephemeroptera that develop in fresh water and live very briefly as winged...

While some animals take months to reproduce, mayfly need just one perfect day.
Mayflies are fragile, gossamer-winged insects that arise from bodies of water and often swarm in great numbers.2005, Terry Hellekson, Fish Flies: The Encyclopedia of the Fly Tier's Art, page 213
Stoneflies have negligible consumptive (thin solid line) and behavioral effects (thin dashed line) on mayfly abundance.2010, Barbara L. Peckarsky, J. David Allan, Angus R. McIntosh, Brad W. Taylor, “Chapter 9: Understanding the Role of Predation in Open...

nounCharacterized by a short duration; short-lived.

But it did spike a year ago during the mayfly premiership of Liz Truss.2023 October 7, Jim Pickard, “It’s not government that creates jobs”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times...

More sentences with mayfly

Obviously if you see a grasser eat something–a bee, wasp, or mayfly–go that way fast!2021, Drew Ross, “Pro Tips: How to Catch Grass Carp on the Fly”, in Orvis.com, archived from the original on 14 Jun 2021. From the entry grasser
These so-called glowworms display a bright blue-green light that attracts prey such as midges, mayflies, and caddisflies.2019, William G. Deutsch, Alabama Rivers: A Celebration & Challenge, MindBridge Press, unnumbered page. From the entry dismalite
Many years the mayfly hatch begins by the time the lake opens in April.2007, John Shewey, On the Fly Guide to the Northwest, page 70. From the entry hatch
The major application of the parachute is for mayfly hatches, but it's also useful for midge hatches.2004, Ed Engle, Fishing Small Flies, page 118. From the entry hatch
Slanguage words tend to lead mayfly lives, counting their duration by days instead of decades.1994, Richard Lederer, Adventures of a Verbivore, New York: Pocket Books, →ISBN, page 107. From the entry slanguage
Cambridge University Press will tell you a “potamophile” mayfly prefers “slow-current lowland waters.” Sounds about right for the Eastern Shore.2013 June 13, Craig O’Donnell, “River organizations hold pair of parties”, in Kent County News, volume 68, number 24, Chestertown, Md.…. From the entry potamophile
Moreover, today we meet Bridie in theatre far too seldom : he is a better value, and more likely to live in record, than the modish mayflies of our stage.1960, The Illustrated London News, volume 237, number 1, page 202. From the entry good value

Meaning of mayfly

noun Any of the many fragile insects of the order Ephemeroptera that develop in fresh water and live very briefly as winged adults.
noun Characterized by a short duration; short-lived.

Full definition of mayfly

Questions about mayfly in a sentence

How do you use mayfly in a sentence?: Mayfly is used as a noun. For example: “While some animals take months to reproduce, mayfly need just one perfect day.”
What is a short sentence with mayfly?: “While some animals take months to reproduce, mayfly need just one perfect day.”
What does mayfly mean?: Mayfly means any of the many fragile insects of the order Ephemeroptera that develop in fresh water and live very briefly as winged adults.

Adapted from Wiktionary: mayfly (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use mayfly in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/mayfly. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.