baleen
Americannoun
noun
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A flexible horny substance hanging in fringed plates from the upper jaw of baleen whales. It is used to strain plankton from seawater when feeding.
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Also called whalebone
Etymology
Origin of baleen
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English balene (from Anglo-French baleine, beleine, ) from Latin bal(l)ēna, variant of bal(l)aena “whale,” from an unidentified language, also the source of Greek phál(l)aina “whale”; replacing Middle English balayn, Middle French balaine “whale(bone),” from Latin, as above
Vocabulary lists containing baleen
Marine Biology - Introductory
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Marine Biology - Middle School
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Marine Biology - High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The study, published in Scientific Reports, found a steep rise in strandings involving common dolphins and baleen whales - filter-feeding species that include minke and humpback whales.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2025
Filter feeders are everywhere in the animal world, from tiny crustaceans and certain types of coral and krill, to various molluscs, barnacles, and even massive basking sharks and baleen whales.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 25, 2024
Like the blue whale, fin whales are balleens, sporting two blowholes and, instead of teeth, hundreds of rows of baleen plates made of keratin.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2024
North Pacific right whales are baleen whales, which feed by straining huge volumes of ocean water through their comb-like baleen plates that trap copepods and other zooplankton.
From Seattle Times ● May 27, 2024
The remnants of the baleen clustered in sticky gobs at the corners of her mouth.
From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
