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characin

American

[kar-uh-sin] / ˈkær ə sɪn /

Or characid

noun

any freshwater fish of the family Characidae, of Africa and Central and South America.

characin British

/ ˈkærəsɪn /

noun

any small carnivorous freshwater cyprinoid fish of the family Characidae, of Central and South America and Africa. They are similar to the carps but more brightly coloured

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of characin

1880–85; < New Latin Characinidae name of family, equivalent to Characin ( us ) the genus ( charac- (< Greek charak-, stem of chárax pointed stake, a sea fish) + -inus -in ¹ ) + -idae -idae

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023