narwhal
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
- narwhalian adjective
Etymology
Origin of narwhal
First recorded in 1650–60; from Scandinavian; compare Norwegian, Swedish, Danish nar(h)val, reshaped from Old Norse nāhvalr, equivalent to nār “corpse” + hvalr whale 1; allegedly so called because its skin resembles that of a human corpse
Explanation
A narwhal is like the unicorn of whales, with a long pointy tusk sticking out of its head. And, like unicorns, you probably won't spot one (unless you are traveling the Arctic waters near Greenland). Only male narwhals have a distinctive ivory tusk, which is actually a long, protruding canine tooth. It's a medium-sized whale, related to the beluga, and it's able to dive underwater for up to 25 minutes at a time. Narwhal comes from the Danish narhval, with the Old Norse root nahvalr literally meaning "corpse whale," for the narwhal's pale white color, thought to resemble the shade of a dead body.
Vocabulary lists containing narwhal
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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.
An extended version of the ad also features a talking narwhal.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 7, 2024
The list includes a Queen's Gallantry Medal for Darryn Frost who used a narwhal tusk to fend off Usman Khan outside the Fishmongers' Hall event.
From BBC • Mar. 17, 2023
And while this shift isn't necessarily bad for the opportunistic cetaceans, which can adapt to a certain threshold of oceanic shifts, it places immense stress on endemic species like narwhal.
From Salon • Mar. 7, 2023
The narwhal, or unicorn of the sea, is an Arctic whale that has a long spiral tusk, up to nearly 10 feet long.
From Washington Post • Nov. 14, 2022
Malia asks as she crawls onto her bed and hugs her stuffed narwhal.
From "A Soft Place to Land" by Janae Marks
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
