red mullet

American  

noun

1. a goatfish or surmullet.

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red mullet British  

noun

1. US name: goatfish.  any of the marine percoid fishes constituting the family Mullidae , esp Mullus surmuletus , a food fish of European waters. They have a pair of long barbels beneath the chin and a reddish coloration

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Etymology

Origin of red mullet

First recorded in 1755–65

Example Sentences

Rock started photographing Bowie as the artist was forming his Ziggy Stardust persona: bright red mullet, with blood-red rouge and eye shadow and glittery gold lipstick.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 19, 2021

Gone are the days when he used to boast an abundant catch of red lobster, sea urchin and red mullet.

From Reuters • Jul. 9, 2019

Cooks stir it into couscous broth, fish soups and tomato sauce for pasta , add it to salads of roasted red peppers or eggplant, and spoon it onto grilled sardines and red mullet.

From Washington Post • Aug. 3, 2017

John Dory, red mullet, gurnard, sardines, anchovies, cuttlefish and squid would all become more common in the North Sea, he said.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2015

The silurus, for instance, is best in the river Danube in the Balkans, while the red mullet, as seen in ℞ No. 427 came from the sea of Galilee.

From Cookery and Dining in Imperial Rome by Vehling, Joseph Dommers