SNAILFISH (snailfishes)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected form: snailfishes   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does snailfish mean? 

• SNAILFISH (noun)
  The noun SNAILFISH has 1 sense:

1. small tadpole-shaped cold-water fishes with pelvic fins forming a sucker; related to lumpfish

  Familiarity information: SNAILFISH used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SNAILFISH (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Small tadpole-shaped cold-water fishes with pelvic fins forming a sucker; related to lumpfish

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

Liparis liparis; sea snail; seasnail; snailfish

Hypernyms ("snailfish" is a kind of...):

scorpaenoid; scorpaenoid fish (fishes having the head armored with bony plates)

Holonyms ("snailfish" is a member of...):

genus Liparis; Liparis (type genus of the Liparididae: snailfishes)

 Context examples 

More than 100 species of snailfish exist all over the world.

(Three New Species of Fish Found at Bottom of Pacific Ocean, VOA)

From the video shot by the Newcastle team, Linley said it was clear there are lots of invertebrate prey down there, and the snailfish are the top predator.

(Three New Species of Fish Found at Bottom of Pacific Ocean, VOA)

"There is something about the snailfish that allows them to adapt to living very deep. Beyond the reach of other fish, they are free of competitors and predators," Linley said in the statement.

(Three New Species of Fish Found at Bottom of Pacific Ocean, VOA)

The fish belong to the snailfish (Liparidae) family, with bulbous heads, translucent, ribbon-like bodies and no scales.

(Three New Species of Fish Found at Bottom of Pacific Ocean, VOA)