Adjacent Words

Oil shark definitions

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Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Shark Shark, n. [Of uncertain origin; perhaps through OF. fr. carcharus a kind of dogfish, Gr. karchari`as, so called from its sharp teeth, fr. ka`rcharos having sharp or jagged teeth; or perhaps named from its rapacity (cf. Shark, v. t. & i.); cf. Corn. scarceas.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) Any one of numerous species of elasmobranch fishes of the order Plagiostomi, found in all seas. Note: Some sharks, as the basking shark and the whale shark, grow to an enormous size, the former becoming forty feet or more, and the latter sixty feet or more, in length. Most of them are harmless to man, but some are exceedingly voracious. The man-eating sharks mostly belong to the genera Carcharhinus, Carcharodon, and related genera. They have several rows of large sharp teeth with serrated edges, as the great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias, or Rondeleti) of tropical seas, and the great blue shark (Carcharhinus glaucus) of all tropical and temperate seas. The former sometimes becomes thirty-six feet long, and is the most voracious and dangerous species known. The rare man-eating shark of the United States coast (Charcarodon Atwoodi) is thought by some to be a variety, or the young, of C. carcharias. The dusky shark (Carcharhinus obscurus), and the smaller blue shark (C. caudatus), both common species on the coast of the United States, are of moderate size and not dangerous. They feed on shellfish and bottom fishes. 2. A rapacious, artful person; a sharper. [Colloq.] 3. Trickery; fraud; petty rapine; as, to live upon the shark. [Obs.] --South. Baskin shark, Liver shark, Nurse shark, Oil shark, Sand shark, Tiger shark, etc. See under Basking, Liver, etc. See also Dogfish, Houndfish, Notidanian, and Tope. Gray shark, the sand shark. Hammer-headed shark. See Hammerhead. Port Jackson shark. See Cestraciont. Shark barrow, the eggcase of a shark; a sea purse. Shark ray. Same as Angel fish (a), under Angel. Thrasher shark, or Thresher shark, a large, voracious shark. See Thrasher. Whale shark, a huge harmless shark (Rhinodon typicus) of the Indian Ocean. It becomes sixty feet or more in length, but has very small teeth.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Oil gas, inflammable gas procured from oil, and used for lighting streets, houses, etc. Oil gland. (a) (Zo["o]l.) A gland which secretes oil; especially in birds, the large gland at the base of the tail. (b) (Bot.) A gland, in some plants, producing oil. Oil green, a pale yellowish green, like oil. Oil of brick, empyreumatic oil obtained by subjecting a brick soaked in oil to distillation at a high temperature, -- used by lapidaries as a vehicle for the emery by which stones and gems are sawn or cut. --Brande & C. Oil of talc, a nostrum made of calcined talc, and famous in the 17th century as a cosmetic. [Obs.] --B. Jonson. Oil of vitriol (Chem.), strong sulphuric acid; -- so called from its oily consistency and from its forming the vitriols or sulphates. Oil of wine, [OE]nanthic ether. See under [OE]nanthic. Oil painting. (a) The art of painting in oil colors. (b) Any kind of painting of which the pigments are originally ground in oil. Oil palm (Bot.), a palm tree whose fruit furnishes oil, esp. El[ae]is Guineensis. See El[ae]is. Oil sardine (Zo["o]l.), an East Indian herring (Clupea scombrina), valued for its oil. Oil shark (Zo["o]l.) (a) The liver shark. (b) The tope. Oil still, a still for hydrocarbons, esp. for petroleum. Oil test, a test for determining the temperature at which petroleum oils give off vapor which is liable to explode. Oil tree. (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Ricinus (R. communis), from the seeds of which castor oil is obtained. (b) An Indian tree, the mahwa. See Mahwa. (c) The oil palm. To burn the midnight oil, to study or work late at night. Volatle oils. See Essential oils, under Essential.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Tope Tope, n. 1. (Zo["o]l.) A small shark or dogfish (Galeorhinus, or Galeus, galeus), native of Europe, but found also on the coasts of California and Tasmania; -- called also toper, oil shark, miller's dog, and penny dog. 2. (Zo["o]l.) The wren. [Prov. Eng.]