NYMPH, among naturalists, that state of winged insects between their living in the form of a worm and their appearing in the winged or more perfect state.
The eggs of insects are first hatched into a kind of worms or maggots: which afterwards pass into the nymph state, surrounded with shells or cases of their own skins; so that, in reality, these nymphs are only the embryo insects, wrapt up in this covering; from
whence they at last get loose, though not without great difficulty.
During this nymph state the creature loses its motion. Swammerdam calls it nympha aurelia, or simply aurelia; and others give it the name of chrysalis, a term of the like import. See the article CHRYALIS.