lake herring

American  

noun

1. a cisco or whitefish, especially Coregonus artedii, of the Great Lakes.

---

lake herring British  

noun

1. another name for cisco

2. another name for powan

---

Etymology

Origin of lake herring

An Americanism dating back to 1835–45

Example Sentences

Native lake trout and lake herring circle above them.

From New York Times • Aug. 19, 2016

The locals in this tiny port — the last real town between Duluth and the Canadian border — know that Harley Toftey is returning with the day’s haul of lake trout and lake herring.

From New York Times • May 17, 2013

With thousands of lake herring trapped by their gills in the 2�-in. meshes, the nets poured into the boats for two hours a glistening stream of thousands of pounds of fish.

From Time Magazine Archive