lamprey

American  

[lam-pree] / ˈlæm pri /

noun

• lampreys
  plural

1. any eellike marine or freshwater fish of the order Petromyzoniformes, having a circular, suctorial mouth with horny teeth for boring into the flesh of other fishes to feed on their blood.

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lamprey British  

/ ˈlæmprɪ /

noun

1. Also called: lamper eel.  any eel-like cyclostome vertebrate of the family Petromyzonidae, having a round sucking mouth for clinging to and feeding on the blood of other animals See also sea lamprey

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• lampreys
  plural

Etymology

Origin of lamprey

1250–1300; Middle English lampreye < Anglo-French *lampreie ( Old French lamproie ) < Late Latin lamprēda; replacing Old English lamprede < Medieval Latin lampreda

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lamprey lampreys

A spokesperson said trout, eels and lamprey were all confirmed dead.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

The River Lugg is home to six protected and endangered species, including common otter, Atlantic salmon, white clawed crayfish, brook lamprey, shad and bullhead.

From BBC ● May 26, 2026

Unlike the sea squirt, both the lamprey and the frog produced many more versions of proteins from individual signaling output genes.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 4, 2026

A recent independent U.K. report on the nuclear sector found it would spare the lives of 0.028 sea trout, six river lamprey, 18 allis shad and 528 twaite shad every year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025

Since the hour he had arrived in the Red Ke^p, Lady Tanda had been stalking him, armed with a never-ending arsenal of lamprey pies, wild boars, and savory cream stews.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin

The Environment Agency found that 2,100 fish died, including eels and lampreys both endangered and protected species.

From BBC ● Nov. 11, 2024

Biologists expect that with the dams now removed and the Klamath flowing freely, all types of native fish will benefit, including fall-run and spring-run chinook as well as coho salmon, steelhead trout and Pacific lampreys.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2024

Then they did similar analyses on juvenile sharks and lampreys.

From Science Magazine ● Apr. 25, 2024

The new study identified a common molecular cue, while known to direct head-to-tail patterning in a wide variety of animals, as part of the gene circuitry guiding hindbrain patterning in sea lampreys.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 21, 2024

On the dais, Lord Wyman attacked a steaming plate of lampreys as if they were an enemy host.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin