elater

• ⇰ One who, or that which, elates.
• ⇰ An elastic spiral filament for dispersing the spores, as in some liverworts.
• ⇰ Any beetle of the family <fam>Elaterid&aelig;</fam>, having the habit, when laid on the back, of giving a sudden upward spring, by a quick movement of the articulation between the abdomen and thorax; -- called also click beetle>, spring beetle>, and snapp
• ⇰ The caudal spring used by <gen>Podura</gen> and related insects for leaping. See Collembola>.
• ⇰ The active principle of elaterium, being found in the juice of the wild or squirting cucumber (<spn>Ecballium agreste</spn>, formerly <spn>Motordica Elaterium</spn>) and other related species. It is extracted as a bitter, white, crystalline substance, whi