pigfish

American

[pig-fish] / ˈpɪgˌfɪʃ /

noun

plural

pigfishes,

plural

pigfish

a grunt, Orthopristis chrysoptera, living in waters off the Atlantic coast of the southern United States.

pigfish British

/ ˈpɪɡˌfɪʃ /

noun

Also called: hogfish. any of several grunts, esp Orthopristis chrysopterus, of the North American Atlantic coast
any of several wrasses, such as Achoerodus gouldii ( giant pigfish ), that occur around the Great Barrier Reef

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of pigfish

An Americanism dating back to 1800–10; pig ¹ + fish

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.

NOAA's Randall Kosaki, the expedition's chief scientist, said the team collected the first specimens of male Hawaiian pigfish about 300 feet below the surface.

From US News • Jun. 16, 2016

Pilchards are his top choice, followed by herring, ballyhoo or pigfish.

From Time Magazine Archive

To catch trophy yellowfin tuna in the Gulf of Mexico, we use six underwater lights on the boat, live pigfish or flying fish and chunking.

From Time Magazine Archive

Dolphins, rock-cod, pigfish, and blackfish may be caught as quickly as they can be hauled out.

From Real Soldiers of Fortune by Davis, Richard Harding

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023