pearlfish

[purl-fish]

noun

plural

pearlfishes ,

plural

pearlfish .

1. any of several small fishes of the family Carapidae, living within pearl oysters, sea cucumbers, starfishes, etc.

Word History and Origins

Origin of pearlfish¹

First recorded in 1585–95; pearl oyster + fish

Example Sentences

Pearlfish go inside the sea cucumbers’ butt and eat their gonads.

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The pearlfish is impressive in numbers as well as appetite.

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Bay obtained a small number of pearlfish two years ago and kept some in cages in a water-covered rice field, others in test tanks.

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Their breeding habits were unaffected; during one two-month test, three pairs of caged pearlfish produced a total of almost 2,000 eggs.

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Entomologist Ernest Bay has pinned his hopes on the little Cynolebias bellottii, or Argentine pearlfish.

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