a young salmon, having dark crossbars on its sides.
the young of certain other fishes, as the codfish.
First recorded in 1765–70; origin uncertain
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Jennifer Kril, living rivers officer at the trust, said: "It's been years in the making, but finding salmon parr here confirms we have achieved the extraordinary."
From BBC • Nov. 13, 2025
The young fish, known as parr, have been spawned in the River Ecclesbourne, near the site of the former Postern Mill in Turnditch.
From BBC • Nov. 13, 2025
Each year, Maine’s Department of Marine Resources and United States Fish and Wildlife Service stocks the rivers and streams with millions of salmon eggs and fry and thousands of parr and smolts.
From The New Yorker • Aug. 7, 2019
Developmental stages—the transitions between the eggs, fry, parr, smolt, and returning salmon—are governed by changes in water temperature, and warmer waters can disrupt the salmon’s life cycle by triggering stunted growth or premature hatching.
From The New Yorker • Aug. 7, 2019
Heading toward the wide parr of the river where trees grouped themselves in families darkening the earth below.
From "Sula" by Toni Morrison
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.
