Lewis & Short

Parsing inflected forms may not always work as expected. If the following does not give the correct word, try Latin Words or Perseus.

larva (ante-class. as trisyl. lārŭa), ae, f. [2. lar],

  1. I. a ghost, spectre: larvae stimulant virum, Plaut. Capt. 3, 4, 66: amator qui me et uxorem ludificatust larva, id. Cas. 3, 4, 2; id. Aul. 4, 4, 15: cum mortuis non nisi larvas luctari, Plin. praef. H. N. § 31.
    As a term of reproach, hobgoblin, scarecrow: etiam loquere larŭa? Plaut. Merc. 5, 4, 20: nam haec quidem edepol larvarum plenast, possessed, id. Am. 2, 2, 145.
  2. II. Transf.
    1. A. A mask (cf. persona): nil illi larva et tragicis opus esse cothurnis, Hor. S. 1, 5, 64.
    2. B. A skeleton, Petr. 34, 8.