shark en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
- /ʃɑːk/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- /ʃɑɹk/ (General-American)
Etymology
From Middle English shark (used by Thomas Beckington in 1442 to refer to a kind of fish), of uncertain origin. Most likely from a semantic extension of the German-derived shark (“scoundrel”), see below. The fish was originally called a dogfish or haye in English and Middle English. Its name in Old English is unknown, although some uses of the word hranfisċ that do not appear to carry the sense of "whale" may have been referencing it. alternative theories Some older dictionaries derived the word from Latin c(h)archarias, c(h)acharus (from Ancient Greek), but admit that "the requisite [Old French] forms intermediate between E. shark and L. carcharus are not found, and it is not certain that the name [shark] was orig. applied to the fish; it may have been first used of a greedy man". Other older authorities speculated that the word might derive from Yucatec Maya xok (“fish”) (/ʃok/), as John Hawkins brought a specimen from the area where Mayan was spoken to England in the 1560s. However, the 1442 use rules out a New World origin for the word.
Meanings
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(countable) Any predatory fish of the superorder Selachimorpha, with a cartilaginous skeleton and 5 to 7 gill slits on each side of its head.
He said he had spoken to a woman who was kayaking off Catalina Island, California, in 2008 when a shark slammed her kayak from underneath and sent her flying into the air. She then landed on the back of the shark, Collier said. "At that point the shark started to swim out to sea, so she jumped off its back," Collier said.
2011 October 13, AP, “Man 'surfs' great white shark”, in The Guardian:The straunge fishe is in length xvij. foote and iij. foote broad, and in compas about the bodie vj. foote; and is round snowted, short headdid, hauing iij. rankes of teeth on either iawe, …. Also it hath v. gills of eache side of the head, shoing white. Ther is no proper name for it that I know, but that sertayne men of Captayne Haukinses doth call it a sharke.
1569, The true discripcion of this marueilous straunge Fishe, whiche was taken on Thursday was sennight, the xvi. day of June, this present month, in the yeare of our Lord God, M.D.lxix., a broadside printed in London, the second earliest known use of the term; reprinted in A Collection of Seventy-Nine Black-Letter Ballads and Broadsides: printed in the reigh of Queen Elizabeth, between the years 1559 and 1597 in 1867
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(uncountable) Meat of this animal, consumed as food.
Do not eat shark, swordfish, king mackerel, or tilefish due to their high levels of mercury.
2013, Jill J. Grover, Ecological Food for Thought on Seafood, West Conshohocken, PA: Infinity Publishing, →ISBN, page 26:In the past, people did not like to eat shark because they thought sharks ate the bodies of dead sailors.
1992, Miranda MacQuitty, Shark, First American edition, New York, NY: Alfred A. Knopf, →ISBN, page 61:Shark has traditionally, although in some secrecy, been a staple food in European, American and Australian food.
1987, John D.Stevens, editor, Sharks, New York, NY: Facts on File, →ISBN, page 195:
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(broadly, countable, uncountable) Any fish of the class Chondrichthyes, especially an extinct shark-like holocephalian.
Cladoselache, a well-preserved Devonian shark fossil from Ohio. Here the cartilages and some muscle tissues are preserved intact
2024, John Long, The Secret History of Sharks: The Rise of the Ocean's Most Fearsome Predators, New York: Ballantine Books, page 17:
- (countable, uncountable) A freshwater fish that resembles a true shark (Selachimorpha) in appearance or movement; a freshwater shark. ▸ Any fish in the genus Epalzeorhynchos.
- (countable, uncountable) A freshwater fish that resembles a true shark (Selachimorpha) in appearance or movement; a freshwater shark. ▸ Any fish in the genus Balantiocheilos.
- (countable, uncountable) A freshwater fish that resembles a true shark (Selachimorpha) in appearance or movement; a freshwater shark. ▸ An iridescent shark (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus).
- (countable, uncountable) A freshwater fish that resembles a true shark (Selachimorpha) in appearance or movement; a freshwater shark. ▸ A roseline shark (Dawkinsia denisonii).
- (countable, uncountable) A freshwater fish that resembles a true shark (Selachimorpha) in appearance or movement; a freshwater shark. ▸ A paroon shark (Pangasius sanitwongsei).
- (countable) A noctuid moth of species Cucullia umbratica.
- (UK, countable, qualifier:university slang) A university student who is not a fresher that has engaged in sexual activity with a fresher; usually habitually and with multiple people.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| sharke | alternative, obsolete | lexicographic | |
| sharks | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
cow shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkflesh (others) · salmon shark (hyponymic derived terms) · bluntnose sixgill shark (hyponymic derived terms) · thresher shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shyshark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark ray (others) · frill shark (hyponymic derived terms) · redfin shark (hyponymic derived terms) · fox shark (hyponymic derived terms) · weasel shark (hyponymic derived terms) · silvertip shark (hyponymic derived terms) · smooth shark (hyponymic derived terms) · river shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharktopus (others) · Atlantic sharpnose shark (hyponymic derived terms) · slough shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark up (others) · shark bite (others) · Shark Creek (others) · nonshark (others) · shark net (others) · carpet shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharksucker (others) · landshark (hyponymic derived terms) · pyjama shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharking (others) · hammerhead shark (hyponymic derived terms) · megatooth shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharklet (others) · silver shark (hyponymic derived terms) · gummy shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharpnose shark (hyponymic derived terms) · bramble shark (hyponymic derived terms) · Ganges shark (hyponymic derived terms) · wouldn't shout if a shark bit him (others) · dusky shark (hyponymic derived terms) · basking shark (hyponymic derived terms) · goblin shark (hyponymic derived terms) · great white shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkie (others) · card shark (hyponymic derived terms) · graceful shark (hyponymic derived terms) · zebra shark (hyponymic derived terms) · mud shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkless (others) · prickly shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark baiter (others) · thickskin shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkish (others) · Siamese bala shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sicklefin lemon shark (hyponymic derived terms) · jump the shark (others) · rough shark (hyponymic derived terms) · brown shark (hyponymic derived terms) · tricolour shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sixgill shark (hyponymic derived terms) · great mackerel shark (hyponymic derived terms) · copper shark (hyponymic derived terms) · spiny shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharker (others) · sand tiger shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sawshark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkminnow (others) · requiem shark (hyponymic derived terms) · Snark (others) · narrowtooth shark (hyponymic derived terms) · cardshark (hyponymic derived terms) · deepwater shark (hyponymic derived terms) · red-tailed black shark (hyponymic derived terms) · swellshark (hyponymic derived terms) · reef shark (hyponymic derived terms) · mudshark (hyponymic derived terms) · megamouth shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark fin (others) · gollumshark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark-bite (others) · blacknose shark (others) · shark fin soup (others) · tricolor shark (hyponymic derived terms) · collared carpet shark (hyponymic derived terms) · grey reef shark (hyponymic derived terms) · blind shark (hyponymic derived terms) · finetooth shark (others) · ground shark (hyponymic derived terms) · bigeyed sixgill shark (hyponymic derived terms) · carpetshark (hyponymic derived terms) · ghost shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharksfin (others) · shark-finned (others) · bala shark (hyponymic derived terms) · iridescent shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark-jumping (others) · southern African frilled shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkdom (others) · redtail shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sandbar shark (hyponymic derived terms) · blue shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark week (others) · school shark (hyponymic derived terms) · freshwater shark (hyponymic derived terms) · saw shark (hyponymic derived terms) · draughtsboard shark (hyponymic derived terms) · broadfin shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharpnose sevengill shark (hyponymic derived terms) · lemon shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharklike (others) · sharks and minnows (others) · whale shark (hyponymic derived terms) · gulper shark (hyponymic derived terms) · cookiecutter shark (hyponymic derived terms) · red-finned shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkmeat (others) · sharptooth lemon shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sleeper shark (hyponymic derived terms) · tiger shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark-fin (others) · Halmahera epaulette shark (others) · Shark Bay (others) · whitefin shark (hyponymic derived terms) · mackerel shark (hyponymic derived terms) · dumb gulper shark (others) · nurse shark (hyponymic derived terms) · ruby shark (hyponymic derived terms) · winghead shark (hyponymic derived terms) · blacktip reef shark (hyponymic derived terms) · dogfish shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark-gull (others) · crow shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharksploitation (others) · sharkful (others) · whitecheek shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark catfish (others) · lanternshark (hyponymic derived terms) · mako shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sand shark (hyponymic derived terms) · hound shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark-bait (others) · horn shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark-infested (others) · lantern shark (hyponymic derived terms) · Greenland shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharked (others) · white shark (hyponymic derived terms) · Queensland shark (hyponymic derived terms) · shark attack (others) · sharkwatching (others) · sleepershark (hyponymic derived terms) · striped catshark (hyponymic derived terms) · bamboo shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkskinned (others) · shark tank (others) · cat shark (hyponymic derived terms) · gummyshark (hyponymic derived terms) · oceanic whitetip shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkling (others) · red tailed shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkskin (others) · crocodile shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharky (others) · shark bait (others) · eagle shark (hyponymic derived terms) · frilled shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkfin (others) · antishark (others) · walking shark (hyponymic derived terms) · megashark (hyponymic derived terms) · angel shark (hyponymic derived terms) · kitefin shark (hyponymic derived terms) · catshark (hyponymic derived terms) · bull shark (hyponymic derived terms) · leopard shark (hyponymic derived terms) · loan shark (others) · grey nurse shark (hyponymic derived terms) · rainbow shark (hyponymic derived terms) · angelshark (hyponymic derived terms) · Atlantic sixgill shark (others) · lost shark (hyponymic derived terms) · epaulette shark (hyponymic derived terms) · whaler shark (hyponymic derived terms) · bullhead shark (hyponymic derived terms) · Port Jackson shark (others) · gray reef shark (hyponymic derived terms) · loanshark (others) · houndshark (hyponymic derived terms) · bonnethead shark (hyponymic derived terms) · red-fin shark (hyponymic derived terms) · sharkishly (others)
Synonyms
haye (cartilaginous fish of Selachimorpha)
Translations (258)
cs žralok (fish) · an tiburón (fish) · mr मोरी (fish) · crh akula (fish) · wyi darrak (fish) · duo iyu (fish) · sm malie (fish) · kg dukudaka (fish) · gd siorc (fish) · awg tʳya (fish) · tk akula (fish) · pt escalo (fish) · tfn łiqʼa gizha (fish) · nds-de hai (fish) · ady хытыгъужъ (fish) · yi הײַפֿיש (fish) · bal پاگاس (fish) · he כָּרִישׁ (fish) · kw morvleydh (fish) · ka ზვიგენი (fish) · ast tiburón (fish) · su hiu (fish) · yua xok (fish) · gsw Hai (fish) · cab weibeyuwa (fish) · lo ປາສະຫຼາມ (fish) · sh мо̀рскӣ па̏с (fish) · yrl iperú (fish) · bnp pikeo (fish) · se háia (fish) · ms jerung (fish) · nv łóóʼ hashkéhé (fish) · bo གཏུམ་ཉ (fish) · zdj mbamba (fish) · mn аварга загас (fish) · hif nangio (fish) · nn hai (fish) · yue 鯊魚 /鲨鱼 (fish) · kac ngăman (fish) · io sharko (fish) · ru аку́ла (fish) · tpi sak (fish) · ko 상어 (fish) · la squalus (fish) · gu શાર્ક (fish) · ce гӏоркхма (fish) · ur شارک مچھلی (fish) · cy siarc (fish) · da haj (fish) · eu marrazo (fish) · sjd а̄һклэӈӈк (fish) · hu cápa (fish) · rm squagl (fish) · kn ಚೊರ (fish) · cv акула (fish) · nrf cheurque (fish) · ary مراخو (fish) · as হাঙৰ (fish) · km ឆ្លាម (fish) · pl rekin (fish) · ba акула (fish) · tg наҳанг (fish) · nb hai (fish) · sh ајкула (fish) · eo ŝarko (fish) · cmn 鯊魚 /鲨鱼 (fish) · am ሻርክ (fish) · ace yèe (fish) · yij yirratharnangga (fish) · gl cailón (fish) · tet uu (fish) · my ငါးမန်း (fish) · pam limpasut (fish) · ar ركان (fish) · mk ајкула (fish) · niv ваӻс (fish) · lo ສະຫຼາມ (fish) · kea tubaron (fish) · ug لەھەڭ (fish) · sgs rīklīs (fish) · wyi dalanarron (fish) · ur شارک (fish) · te సొర చేప (fish) · mfa يو (fish) · ar لُخْم (fish) · gl quenlla (fish) · mn дулан загас (fish) · vo jak (fish) · mg akio (fish) · ast escualu (fish) · ja サメ (fish) · sk žralok (fish) · ady акул (fish) · tt акула (fish) · wuu 鯊魚 /鲨鱼 (fish) · crh köpek balığı (fish) · ab аӷлам (fish) · na ebawo (fish) · mi mangō (fish) · mn ᠠᠪᠤᠷᠭᠤ ᠵᠢᠭᠠᠰᠤ (fish) · lb Hai (fish) · ady хыхьэ (fish) · nrf chörk (fish) · sms akkli (fish) · ml സ്രാവ് (fish) · tsg kaytan (fish) · lv haizivis (fish) · is hákarl (fish) · zu ushaka class 1a/2a (fish) · oc làmia (fish) · fa کوسه (fish) · mwn ကဝဲ (fish) · hi शार्क (fish) · th ปลาฉลาม (fish) · ht reken (fish) · mdh bagisan (fish) · gl tabeirón (fish) · fj qio (fish) · kjp ကာဝဲါ (fish) · ga siorc (fish) · et hai (fish) · zdj panganyile (fish) · el καρχαρίας (fish) · urk ฮยู (fish) · sd مَنگَرُ (fish) · jv ꦲꦶꦪꦸ (fish) · lti iu (fish) · vi cá nhám (fish) · bg аку́ла (fish) · pwn qisu (fish) · mic siglati (fish) · uz akula (fish) · tpw yperu (fish) · cdo 鯊魚 /鲨鱼 (fish) · de Haifisch (fish) · haw manō (fish) · iba iyu (fish) · hy շնաձուկ (fish) · sm magō (fish) · mrw begisan (fish) · ta சுறா (fish) · vep akul (fish) · pt escalho (fish) · sjm kaytan (fish) · gl marrago (fish) · dv މިޔަރު (fish) · chk poku (fish) · br rinkin (fish) · apc كلب البحر (fish) · niu magō (fish) · es escualo (fish) · sw papa (fish) · okm 두루치 (fish) · sh ajkula (fish) · war pating (fish) · gd cearban (fish) · sq peshkaqen (fish) · acm كوسج (fish) · chr ᏗᎧᏳᎦ (fish) · ckb کۆسە (fish) · ca tauró (fish) · ms ikan yu (fish) · tl pating (fish) · az köpək balığı (fish) · ak oboodede (fish) · clm k'ʷaʔc'ə́n'tč (fish) · shn ပႃငမၢၼ်း (fish) · tli chich.uwaa (fish) · gv sharkagh (fish) · nl haai (fish) · mt kelb il-baħar (fish) · drg hizu (fish) · guw gbowle (fish) · pwo ကၭဝဲ (fish) · gl tiburón (fish) · mg antsantsa (fish) · gl lamia (fish) · de Hai (fish) · br morvleiz (fish) · frr heifask (fish) · blf uvun (fish) · kl eqalussuaq (fish) · yi שאַרק (fish) · ceb iho (fish) · bn হাঙর (fish) · bcl iho (fish) · rcf rokin (fish) · sh mòrskī pȁs (fish) · li hej (fish) · si මෝරා (fish) · nrf hau (fish) · nhn cipacmichin (fish) · woe pagow (fish) · pt tubarão (fish) · xal аврһ заһсн (fish) · ms yu (fish) · mn ᠳᠤᠯᠠᠨ ᠵᠢᠭᠠᠰᠤ (fish) · th ฉลาม (fish) · uk аку́ла (fish) · arz سمكة القرش (fish) · ca esqual (fish) · nhw michtekuajketl (fish) · ary قرش (fish) · tr köpek balığı (fish) · yo ekurá (fish) · sl morski pes (fish) · es tiburón (fish) · afb يريور (fish) · sv haj (fish) · be аку́ла (fish) · lv haizivs (fish) · ar سَمَكَةُ الْقِرْش (fish) · it squalo (fish) · kn ಷಾರ್ಕ್ ಮೀನು (fish) · mt xark (fish) · hak 鯊魚 /鲨鱼 (fish) · as হাংগৰ (fish) · pon pako (fish) · fr requin (fish) · fi hai (fish) · mfe rekin (fish) · lb Haifësch (fish) · af haai (fish) · tao zokang (fish) · km ត្រីឆ្លាម (fish) · ja 鮫 (fish) · yxg powai (fish) · kea tibaron (fish) · id hiu (fish) · cy morgi (fish) · fr squale (fish) · mtf kaŋgoŋasen (fish) · qu tiwrun (fish) · nhn zipakmichin (fish) · car aipajawa (fish) · grc σέλαχος (fish) · kk қатыран (fish) · ug ئاكۇلا (fish) · vi cá mập (fish) · lij squæo (fish) · az akula (fish) · to ʻanga (fish) · hi हाँगर (fish) · ps منو (fish) · fo hávur (fish) · bn হাঙ্গর (fish) · pam pating (fish) · ro rechin (fish) · lt ryklys (fish) · tg кӯсамоҳӣ (fish) · knb iyu (fish) · nan-hbl 鯊魚 /鲨鱼 (fish) · ky акула (fish) · acw قرش (fish) · it pescecane (fish) · pt cação (fish) · ar قِرْش (fish) · bno iho (fish)
wikipedia: Thomas Beckington · wikidata: Q1431 · wikidata: Q345 · wikidata: Q7372