grampus

[ gram-puhs ]
See synonyms for grampus on Thesaurus.com
noun,plural gram·pus·es.
  1. a cetacean, Grampus griseus, of the dolphin family, widely distributed in northern seas.

  2. any of various related cetaceans, as the killer whale, Orcinus (Orca) orca.

  1. a giant whip scorpion common to Florida.

Origin of grampus

1
1520–30; earlier grampoys, variant (by assimilation) of graundepose great fish, equivalent to graundegrand + pose, poys<Middle French pois, peis<Latin pisce- (stem of piscis) fish; replacing Middle English gra(s)peis<Middle French ≪ Latin crassus piscis fat fish

Words Nearby grampus

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use grampus in a sentence

  • No craft like the grampus could work through a floe, What knots she could run, and what tons she could stow!

  • Not a man had deserted, and grampus gave me a favourable account of the behaviour of all hands.

    Hurricane Hurry | W.H.G. Kingston
  • As soon as the prisoners had shoved off, I sent the boat back to the tender, and grampus and two men returned in her.

    Hurricane Hurry | W.H.G. Kingston
  • grampus, who had charge of the deck while I was below, watched them narrowly, and did not differ with me as to their character.

    Hurricane Hurry | W.H.G. Kingston
  • I saw to everything myself, or sent grampus to ascertain that people were losing no time in executing my orders.

    Hurricane Hurry | W.H.G. Kingston

British Dictionary definitions for grampus

grampus

/ (ˈɡræmpəs) /


nounplural -puses
  1. a widely distributed slaty-grey dolphin, Grampus griseus, with a blunt snout

  2. another name for killer whale

Origin of grampus

1
C16: from Old French graspois, from gras fat (from Latin crassus) + pois fish (from Latin piscis)

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