prawn

[prawn]

See more synonyms for prawn on Thesaurus.com

noun

any of various shrimplike decapod crustaceans of the genera Palaemon, Penaeus, etc., certain of which are used as food.

verb (used with object)

to catch prawns, as for food.

Idioms

come the raw prawn, Australian Slang. to try to impose on or deceive someone (followed by with).

Origin of prawn

1400–50; late Middle English prane, of uncertain origin

Related formsprawn·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for prawn

clam, crustacean, mollusk, snail, scallop, conch, crawfish, prawn, shrimp, lobster, mussel, oyster, barnacle, whelk, piddock, crayfish

Examples from the Web for prawn

Contemporary Examples of prawn

PRAWN COCKTAILThis is also delicious if you replace the shrimp with smoked salmon or cooked crab.
That '70s Food
Lydia Brownlow
April 22, 2011
Similar in appearance and often used synonymously—and erroneously—the shrimp and the prawn are two different creatures.
Four Things You Didn't Know About Shrimp
Jane Frye
June 24, 2009
After a lunch of prawn curry and rice at the Bunder, you may want to visit the Lighthouse Hill and its vicinity.
An Excerpt from Between the Assassinations
Aravind Adiga
June 10, 2009

Historical Examples of prawn

The English lobster is a species, our cray fish is another, our prawn is another.
On the Study of Zoology
Thomas H. Huxley
The prawn has never been tried on the Shuswap Lake; it might be worth a trial.
Fishing in British Columbia
Thomas Wilson Lambert
Like most other kinds of crustacea, the prawn is much larger in tropical climates.
The Ocean World:
Louis Figuier
But for a prawn curry there is no place like the City of Palaces.
Cakes & Ale
Edward Spencer
Figs. 37 and 38 represent two stages in the development of the prawn.
On the Origin and Metamorphoses of Insects
Sir John Lubbock

British Dictionary definitions for prawn

prawn

noun

any of various small edible marine decapod crustaceans of the genera Palaemon, Penaeus, etc, having a slender flattened body with a long tail and two pairs of pincers
come the raw prawn Australian informal to attempt deception

Derived Formsprawner, noun

Word Origin for prawn

C15: of obscure origin

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

Word Origin and History for prawn

early 15c., prayne, of unknown origin. "No similar name found in other langs." [OED].