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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Firefly \Fire"fly'\, noun; pl. {Fireflies}. (Zo["o]l.) Any luminous winged insect, esp. luminous beetles of the family {Lampyrid[ae]}.
Note: The common American species belong to the genera {Photinus} (especially {Photinus pyralis}) and {Photuris}, in which both sexes are winged. The name is also applied to luminous species of {Elaterid[ae]}. See {Fire beetle}. [1913 Webster +PJC]
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
firefly
noun
1: tropical American click beetle having bright luminous spots [syn: {fire beetle}, {Pyrophorus noctiluca}]
2: nocturnal beetle common in warm regions having luminescent abdominal organs [syn: {lightning bug}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
31 Moby Thesaurus words for "firefly": blink, blinking, candle fly, coruscation, fire beetle, fireworm, glimmer, glimmering, glisten, glister, glitter, glittering, glowworm, lampyrid, lantern fly, lightning bug, luciferase, luciferin, luminophor, phosphor, scintilla, scintillation, shimmer, shimmering, spangle, spark, sparkle, stroboscopic light, tinsel, twinkle, twinkling
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