Adjacent Words

horse mackerel definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: largest tuna; to 1500 pounds; of mostly temperate seas: feed in polar regions but breed in tropics [syn: bluefin, bluefin tuna, horse mackerel, Thunnus thynnus]
2: large elongated compressed food fish of the Atlantic waters of Europe [syn: horse mackerel, saurel, Trachurus trachurus]
3: a California food fish [syn: horse mackerel, jack mackerel, Spanish mackerel, saurel, Trachurus symmetricus]

Merriam Webster's

noun Date: circa 1705 1. any of various large carangid food fishes; especially jack mackerel 2. bluefin tuna

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Jurel Ju"rel, n. (Zo["o]l.) A yellow carangoid fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts (Caranx chrysos), most abundant southward, where it is valued as a food fish; -- called also hardtail, horse crevall['e], jack, buffalo jack, skipjack, yellow mackerel, and sometimes, improperly, horse mackerel. Other species of Caranx (as C. fallax) are also sometimes called jurel.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Mackerel Mack`er*el, n. [OF. maquerel, F. maquereau (LL. macarellus), prob. for maclereau, fr. L. macula a spot, in allusion to the markings on the fish. See Mail armor.] (Zo["o]l.) Any species of the genus Scomber, and of several related genera. They are finely formed and very active oceanic fishes. Most of them are highly prized for food. Note: The common mackerel (Scomber scombrus), which inhabits both sides of the North Atlantic, is one of the most important food fishes. It is mottled with green and blue. The Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus maculatus), of the American coast, is covered with bright yellow circular spots. Bull mackerel, Chub mackerel. (Zo["o]l.) See under Chub. Frigate mackerel. See under Frigate. Horse mackerel . See under Horse. Mackerel bird (Zo["o]l.), the wryneck; -- so called because it arrives in England at the time when mackerel are in season. Mackerel cock (Zo["o]l.), the Manx shearwater; -- so called because it precedes the appearance of the mackerel on the east coast of Ireland. Mackerel guide. (Zo["o]l.) See Garfish (a) . Mackerel gull (Zo["o]l.) any one of several species of gull which feed upon or follow mackerel, as the kittiwake. Mackerel midge (Zo["o]l.), a very small oceanic gadoid fish of the North Atlantic. It is about an inch and a half long and has four barbels on the upper jaw. It is now considered the young of the genus Onos, or Motella. Mackerel plow, an instrument for creasing the sides of lean mackerel to improve their appearance. --Knight. Mackerel shark (Zo["o]l.), the porbeagle. Mackerel sky, or Mackerel-back sky, a sky flecked with small white clouds; a cirro-cumulus. See Cloud. Mackerel sky and mare's-tails Make tall ships carry low sails. --Old Rhyme.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Saurel Sau"rel, n. (Zo["o]l.) Any carangoid fish of the genus Trachurus, especially T. trachurus, or T. saurus, of Europe and America, and T. picturatus of California. Called also skipjack, and horse mackerel.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Tunny Tun"ny (t[u^]n"n[y^]), n.; pl. Tunnies. [L. thunnus, thynnus, Gr. qy`nnos, qy^nos: cf. It. tonno, F. & Pr. thon.] (Zo["o]l.) Any one of several species of large oceanic fishes belonging to the Mackerel family, especially the common or great tunny (Orcynus or Albacora thynnus) native of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It sometimes weighs a thousand pounds or more, and is extensively caught in the Mediterranean. On the American coast it is called horse mackerel. See Illust. of Horse mackerel, under Horse. [Written also thynny.] Note: The little tunny (Gymnosarda alletterata) of the Mediterranean and North Atlantic, and the long-finned tunny, or albicore (see Albicore), are related species of smaller size.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Albicore Al"bi*core, n. [F. albicore (cf. Sp. albacora, Pg. albacor, albacora, albecora), fr. Ar. bakr, bekr, a young camel, young cow, heifer, and the article al: cf. Pg. bacoro a little pig.] (Zo["o]l.) A name applied to several large fishes of the Mackerel family, esp. Orcynus alalonga. One species (Orcynus thynnus), common in the Mediterranean and Atlantic, is called in New England the horse mackerel; the tunny. [Written also albacore.]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Bluefish Blue"fish`, n. (Zo["o]l.) 1. A large voracious fish (Pomatomus saitatrix), of the family Carangid[ae], valued as a food fish, and widely distributed on the American coast. On the New Jersey and Rhode Island coast it is called the horse mackerel, in Virginia saltwater tailor, or skipjack. 2. A West Indian fish (Platyglossus radiatus), of the family Labrid[ae]. Note: The name is applied locally to other species of fishes; as the cunner, sea bass, squeteague, etc.