Other forms: nymphs
A nymph is a minor female spirit of woods and water in Greek myth. A woodland nymph, a water nymph, nymphs of the river.
The kinds are named by habitat: dryads in trees, naiads in fresh water, nereids in the sea, oreads in mountains. They are minor divinities attached to particular places rather than to the whole world, which is why a spring or a grove could have its own. In entomology, a nymph is the immature stage of an insect that does not pupate — a dragonfly nymph lives underwater for years.
1nounnymphA minor female spirit of woods and water.
“The painting shows nymphs dancing in a forest clearing.”
2nounimmatureThe immature stage of certain insects.
“The dragonfly nymph lives underwater before climbing out to become an adult.”
nymph is a spirit or larval stage.
Greek nymphe meant a bride or a young woman, and the divine sense came from that. Latin nympha gives both the mythological creature and, through French, the word nymph in biology.
Middle English
nimphe
English, today
nymph
From Middle English nimphe. From Middle English nimphe, from Old English nymphē and Old French nimphe, both from Latin nympha (“nymph, bride”), from Ancient Greek νύμφη (“bride, young maiden”). a doublet of nympha.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA
Practised in Myths & Legends, Fairy Tales & Folklore