hagfish

American  

[hag-fish] / ˈhægˌfɪʃ /

noun

plural

hagfish,

plural

hagfishes

1. any eellike, marine cyclostome of the order Myxiniformes, having undeveloped eyes, a barbel-rimmed, circular mouth, and horny teeth for boring into the flesh of fishes to feed on their interior parts.

---

hagfish British  

/ ˈhæɡˌfɪʃ /

noun

1. Often shortened to: hag.  any eel-like marine cyclostome vertebrate of the family Myxinidae, having a round sucking mouth and feeding on the tissues of other animals and on dead organic material

---

Etymology

Origin of hagfish

First recorded in 1605–15; hag ¹ + fish

Example Sentences

A shark trying to take a bite of a hagfish will find itself suddenly unable to breathe, its gills clogged with the slime.

From New York Times

"The cell clusters we observed are likely lamprey-specific features, as they are not recognizable in the head mesoderm of both hagfish and shark embryos," explains Dr. Onai.

From Science Daily

“I have never met anyone like John,” said Douglas Fudge, a professor of biological sciences at Chapman University whose research into the biophysics of hagfish slime has benefited from Gregg’s funding.

From Los Angeles Times

“It was a little hard to wrap my head around because of how different it looks from a lamprey or hagfish,” says McCoy, who was not involved in the new study.

From Scientific American

The whale’s stomach contained six hagfish traps, seven types of fishing net, two types of plastic bags, a light protector, fishing line and a float from a net.

From Seattle Times