clingfish

American

[kling-fish] / ˈklɪŋˌfɪʃ /

noun

any fish of the family Gobiesocidae, having a sucking disk on the abdomen for clinging to stones, debris, etc.

clingfish British

/ ˈklɪŋˌfɪʃ /

noun

any small marine teleost fish of the family Gobiesocidae, having a flattened elongated body with a sucking disc beneath the head for clinging to rocks, etc

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of clingfish

First recorded in 1890–95; cling ¹ + fish

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

clingfish

When the researchers pitted euthanized clingfish against eight manufactured suction cups, the fish held fast to eight materials ranging from glass to the grittiest sandpaper.

From Science Magazine ● May 1, 2013

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