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crawdad

[ kraw-dad ]

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Word History and Origins

Origin of crawdad1

An Americanism first recorded in 1900–05; craw(fish) + dad (perhaps dad 1 ); doodad
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Example Sentences

The assured magnate, the superficial wife, the doted-upon child who was raised so cloistered he whistles canary songs to a tank of crawdads and tries to teach pet tricks to a fish.

The chickadee flew in to replace a license plate featuring a crustacean that critics said looked more like a cooked crawdad than a Maine lobster, the state’s signature seafood.

PS Dad says some things called crawdads that look like lobsters live in the creek.

The American Southeast has the greatest aquatic biodiversity of anywhere in the temperate world, with an amazing array of fish, mussels, aquatic snails, crawdads and aquatic insects, like mayflies and dragonflies.

For decades, children who lived near the creek hunted for crawdads and splashed in the water on hot summer days, unaware of the poison they were playing in.

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More About Crawdad

What does crawdad mean?

Crawdad is American slang for a crayfish, a freshwater crustacean related to the lobster.

Crustaceans are shellfish and include crabs, lobsters, and shrimp. Crawdad, crawdaddy, crawfish, and crayfish all refer to the same general type of animal, but there are several different species. Crawdad is mostly used in the Central Midwestern region of the United States, but its use extends to several states.

Example: Missouri is crawdad country—we call ’em “Midwestern lobsters.”

Where does crawdad come from?

The first records of the word crawdad come from the early 1900s. The first part of the word comes from crawfish, which is another term for crayfish. Crayfish aren’t fish—the word comes from an alteration of the Middle English crevice, from the Middle French crevice, from the Old High German crebiz, meaning “crab.” The -dad in crawdad may be the same ending found in the word doodad.

Crawdad and crawdaddy are Americanisms, meaning they’re primarily used in the United States. But use of the terms varies by region. Crawdad and crawdaddy are most often used in Midwestern states and along the West Coast. Crawfish is the prevalent term in much of the South, whereas crayfish is the preferred term in the Northeast. Crawdad can refer to any freshwater crustacean from the genus Astacus or the genus Cambarus. Crawdads are decapods, meaning they have 10 walking legs. They are mostly small, lobster-like creatures, like the spiny lobster, also called the rock lobster.

Did you know ... ?

What are some synonyms for crawdad?

What are some words that may share a root or word element with crawdad

What are some words that often get used in discussing crawdad?

How is crawdad used in real life?

Crawdad is a regional slang term, and people like to debate whether such creatures are properly called crayfish, crawfish, or crawdads.

 

 

Try using crawdad!

Is crawdad used correctly in the following sentence?

When I was a kid, we used to catch crawdads in the creek.

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