merman
noun
(in folklore) a male marine creature, having the head, torso, and arms of a man and the tail of a fish.
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merman
1 American
[mur-man]
/ ˈmɜrˌmæn /
noun
-
mermen
plural
-
(in folklore) a male marine creature, having the head, torso, and arms of a man and the tail of a fish.
-
a highly skilled male swimmer.
Merman
2
American
[mur-muhn]
/ ˈmɜr mən /
noun
merman
British
/ ˈmɜːˌmæn /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of merman
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Louie’s face appears on a merman swimming near a shipwreck.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 7, 2025
But the first mermaid that comes into focus doesn’t so much evoke wonder as it does a flashback of Ben Stiller’s merman in “Zoolander.”
From Washington Times ● May 23, 2023
Well, yes, but you can blame Javier Bardem, who can do the gaze-of-a-loving-father thing to perfection, even when decked out with a merman tail.
From Seattle Times ● May 22, 2023
And the yearly calendar production means getting together to sow merman tails and road-tripping around the island for photo shoots—which have been cathartic for many of the men involved.
From Slate ● Jan. 24, 2020
“The merman of Manderly was not amongst those banners Lady Melisandre saw in her fires,” Jon said.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
Ethel Merman picked up a wine glass and gently squeezed the top.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026
Jerry Zucker: In terms of Ethel Merman and Barbara Billingsley, we thought of a joke: "What if someone said he thinks he's Ethel Merman, and it was her?"
From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2023
On a late Sunday afternoon in March, energy pulses at the Mountain Merman Brewing Company — one of the few bars in town.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 8, 2023
We may think we’re living in a purely realistic drama but our inner lives are belting à la Ethel Merman.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2021
“I don’t know, either. Ethel Merman sings it.”
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
Ariel, played by Halle Bailey, is Black and hails from a mixed-race family of mermaids and mermen.
From Washington Times ● May 25, 2023
The mermen began to appear in the summer of 2017, in St. John’s, Newfoundland, a provincial fishing town roughly midway between Montreal and Greenland.
From Slate ● Jan. 24, 2020
Dive Bar’s 40-foot-long aquarium, located above the main bar, holds 7,500 gallons of saltwater, 60-some tropical fish and, on occasion, mermaids and mermen.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 14, 2018
Photograph: Robert Azmitia/Demotix for the Guardian “I don’t think the merman market has been huge because people are people have been uncomfortable with it,” Candy Ducharme said, attributing the lack of mermen to “fear”.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 14, 2015
Two marble mermen flanked his lordship’s court, Fishfoot’s smaller cousins.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
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