wolffish

[woolf-fish]

noun

plural

wolffish ,

plural

wolffishes .

1. any large fish of the genus Anarhichas, as A. lupus of the northern Atlantic, allied to the blenny and noted for its ferocious appearance and habits.

2. lancetfish.

wolffish

/ ˈwʊlfˌfɪʃ /

noun

1. Also called: catfish. any large northern deep-sea blennioid fish of the family Anarhichadidae, such as Anarhichas lupus. They have large sharp teeth and no pelvic fins and are used as food fishes

Word History and Origins

Origin of wolffish¹

First recorded in 1560–70; wolf + fish

Example Sentences

The Laurentian Channel, for example, is home to 20 species of whales and dolphins, as well as northern wolffish, soft corals called sea-pens, sea turtles and more.

From Washington Times

Overlooking a fjord on Iceland's remote north coast, since 1994 it has been processing the skins of salmon, perch, cod and wolffish.

From BBC

The fish—cod, ocean perch, Arctic char, wolffish—is caught in Iceland every morning and shipped to grocery stores by the end of the day.

From The New Yorker

The Atlantic wolffish, top, has jaws powerful enough to break hard mollusk shells.

From Washington Post