prawn
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
idioms
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
-
informal to attempt deception
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of prawn
1400–50; late Middle English prane, of uncertain origin
Explanation
A prawn is a crustacean that resembles a big shrimp, with long antennae and a shell. When you see prawns on a menu, just imagine large, juicy shrimp. The words shrimp and prawn are used interchangeably so often that the difference between them has blurred. In many English-speaking parts of the world, prawn is the more common term, while North Americans reserve that word for freshwater shrimp (as opposed to ocean shrimp). Prawn is a common name, rather than a scientific one — if you want to sound knowledgable, you can call this animal a decapod crustacean of the sub-order Dendrobranchiata.
Vocabulary lists containing prawn
Something's Fishy: A Fresh Catch of Aquatic Words
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Amazing Animals, A-Z
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Amazing Animals, List 2
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
Between overfishing, climate change, plastic pollution, and habitat destruction, it’s a bad time to be a prawn, cod, seabird, or whale.
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2024
Lunch was roast rack of lamb with an Asian-style marinade, prawn tacos with pineapple salsa and a strawberry ginger trifle.
From New York Times ● May 1, 2023
When he could not convince his father to get into year-round prawn cultivation, Tom reached a deal with him: “Grow pokkali, but leave marketing to me.”
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 25, 2023
The recipe was later modified by the famous Singaporean chef Hooi Kok Wai, who added eggs and sambal, a concoction made of chilli peppers and prawn paste.
From BBC ● Feb. 17, 2023
Dinner was prawn cocktails in wine glasses for starters, lamb chops with chef’s hats with duchesse potatoes and braised celery for main, and a Baked Alaska for "dessert," not "afters."
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
Seated on a thin carpet covering the cardboard floor, Rauzah and her four children share an iftar meal of vegetables and prawns.
From Barron's ● Feb. 25, 2026
That seafood pizza with tuna and prawns wasn’t a huge seller, it turned out.
From Slate ● Nov. 13, 2025
Broiled prawns in a gochujang butter, garlic, and chives were served sizzling hot.
From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2025
This includes shellfish delicacies such as prawns, lobsters, crabs and crayfish that we both catch wild and farm.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 26, 2024
“Now, please go and make the soup. The prawns are there.”
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
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.
