A scarab is a stout beetle, often dark, in the large family that includes dung beetles. The famous kind is the sacred scarab of ancient Egypt: people watched it roll a ball of dung and linked that with the sun, so they carved beetle-shaped stones as lucky charms and as seals.

A scarab一隻 scarab is a stout beetle是一種身體粗壯的甲蟲 often dark通常顏色偏深 in the large family that includes dung beetles屬於包含糞金龜在內的大科 The famous kind is the sacred scarab of ancient Egypt最有名的一種是古埃及的聖甲蟲 people watched it roll a ball of dung人們看牠滾動糞球 and linked that with the sun把這件事跟太陽連結在一起 so they carved beetle-shaped stones as lucky charms and as seals於是把石頭刻成甲蟲的形狀，當作護身符和印章

In English today, scarab can mean the living insect or that beetle-shaped jewel. It is a museum and nature-book word; children usually just say beetle unless they mean the Egyptian one.

In English today在現在的英文裡 scarab can mean the living insect scarab 可以指活生生的昆蟲 or that beetle-shaped jewel也可以指那種甲蟲形狀的寶石飾品 It is a museum and nature-book word這是個常出現在博物館和自然科學書裡的字 children usually just say beetle小孩子通常只會說 beetle unless they mean the Egyptian one除非他們指的是埃及的那種

It came into English from French scarabée, from Latin scarabaeus, “beetle.” English once also had scarabaeus as a learned twin of the same word, but that form has dropped out.

It came into English from French scarabée它是從法文 scarabée 進入英文的 from Latin scarabaeus, "beetle."而法文又來自拉丁文 scarabaeus，意思是「甲蟲」 English once also had scarabaeus as a learned twin of the same word英文曾經也有 scarabaeus 這個更文言的雙胞胎寫法 but that form has dropped out不過這個寫法現在已經消失了