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

Inflected Forms

noun

• 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

Of these there are 30 priority fish, some of which are found in the UK including Allis Shad, River Lamprey, Brook Lamprey and Atlantic Salmon.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

Lamprey — a fish native to the Columbia-Snake system and thriving for some 450 million years — have in a little more than a century been lost from many local waters.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 29, 2020

Lamprey, a favorite for pies in Westeros, isn’t commercially fished, they say.

From Time • Mar. 9, 2016

Surfeit of Lampreys was a delightful book, though perhaps one so enjoyed the Lamprey family that one rather forgot about the murder.

From The Guardian • Sep. 28, 2012

“We rode back to where Lord Lamprey claims they parted ways, but the girls could not find a trail.”

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin