L'ARVE, noun [Latin larva, a mask.] An insect in the caterpillar state; eruca; the state of an insect when the animal is masked, and before it has attained its winged or perfect state; the first stage in the metamorphoses of insects, preceding the chrysalis and perfect insect.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI