Definition of "noctuid" [noc•tu•id]

• Any of numerous, usually dull-colored night-flying moths of the family Noctuidae, having a well-developed proboscis for sucking nectar and larvae such as the cutworms and armyworms that are destructive to young trees and other crops. Also called owlet moth. (noun)
• Of, relating to, or belonging to the family Noctuidae. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Instead, it is a similar brownish "noctuid" caterpillar / moth that has never before been reported as a widespread pest in Liberia but annually plagues parts of nearby Benin."
• "Instead, it is a similar brownish "noctuid" caterpillar / moth that has never before been reported as a widespread pest in Liberia but annually plagues parts of nearby Benin (see map)."
• "Lithophane moths are members of the noctuid family, which often are dull colored."