ȯ(r)ˈthäptərə noun plural
Usage: capitalized
Etymology: New Latin, from orth- + -ptera; from the straight and narrow wings
: an order of Insecta comprising insects with mouthparts fitted for chewing, two pairs of wings or none, and an incomplete metamorphosis:
a. in some especially former classifications : a very large order including the cockroaches, mantises, grasshoppers and crickets, stick insects, and certain related forms and sometimes also the earwigs
b. : an order including the mantises, grasshoppers and crickets, stick insects, and certain related forms and comprising the suborders Manteodea, Grylloblattodea, Saltatoria, and Phasmatodea
c. in some classifications : an order coextensive with Saltatoria