変態

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 変態 is read as へんたい and has two sharply different senses: biological metamorphosis and the insulting personal label “pervert.”
• Basic usage: Biology uses 昆虫が変態する, while calling a person a pervert uses 変態と呼ぶ.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Biological use
  • The change from larva to adult is a technical description of development without a personal judgment.
• Insulting personal use
  • Calling someone 変態 labels that person a pervert and can be offensive, so do not transfer the neutral biological tone to this sense.