A tadpole is the baby form of a frog or a toad. It hatches from an egg in water and looks nothing like its parents: a round head with a body all in one lump, and a long flat tail for swimming.

A tadpole蝌蚪is the baby form of a frog or a toad是青蛙或蟾蜍的幼體。It hatches from an egg in water牠從水裡的卵孵化出來and looks nothing like its parents長得完全不像牠的父母：a round head with a body all in one lump頭圓圓的，跟身體黏成一塊，and a long flat tail for swimming還有一條扁平的長尾巴用來游泳。

It has no legs at first. Over some weeks it grows back legs, then front legs, the tail slowly shrinks and gets absorbed into the body, and it becomes a small frog that can climb out of the water.

It has no legs at first一開始牠沒有腳。Over some weeks過了幾週後it grows back legs牠會先長出後腳，then front legs接著長出前腳，the tail slowly shrinks and gets absorbed into the body尾巴慢慢縮小、被身體吸收，and it becomes a small frog that can climb out of the water最後變成一隻能爬出水面的小青蛙。

That whole change has a name in biology — metamorphosis — and the tadpole is the most famous example of it after the caterpillar.

That whole change這整個變化has a name in biology在生物學裡有個名字——metamorphosis變態，and the tadpole而蝌蚪is the most famous example of it after the caterpillar是繼毛毛蟲之後最有名的例子。

This is an everyday word, not a scientific one: children learn it very early, and it is the sort of thing people keep in a jar in a primary school classroom in spring. There is one figurative use worth knowing, though it is not common: people occasionally call something tadpole-shaped when it has a big round head and a thin tail, like a comma or a sperm cell in a diagram.

This這是an everyday word一個日常用字，not a scientific one不是學術用字：children learn it very early小孩很早就學會這個字，and it is the sort of thing people keep in a jar in a primary school classroom in spring也是春天國小教室裡常有人養在罐子裡的東西。There is one figurative use worth knowing還有一個值得知道的比喻用法，though it is not common雖然不常見：people occasionally call something tadpole-shaped有人偶爾會說某個東西是「蝌蚪形」when it has a big round head and a thin tail如果它有個圓圓的大頭和一條細尾巴，like a comma or a sperm cell in a diagram就像逗號，或圖裡的精子。

Note that the word covers the young of both frogs and toads — English has no separate word for a baby toad.

Note that請注意the word covers the young of both frogs and toads這個字同時涵蓋青蛙和蟾蜍的幼體——English英文has no separate word for a baby toad並沒有另一個字專指小蟾蜍。