rainbow trout

American  

noun

1. a trout, Salmo gairdnerii, native in the coastal waters and streams from Baja California to Alaska, used as a food and game fish.

---

rainbow trout British  

noun

1. a freshwater trout of North American origin, Salmo gairdneri , having a body marked with many black spots and two longitudinal red stripes

---

Etymology

Origin of rainbow trout

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rainbow trout

Excursions with Vail Valley Anglers, booked through the hotel, offer a chance to cast for brown and rainbow trout.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

Fish species affected included largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, flathead catfish, and stocked species such as brown trout and rainbow trout.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 18, 2026

But those rainbow trout — identifiable by iridescent colors running down their sides — are blocked from journeying to the ocean and back by man-made barriers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 14, 2025

In our new research which included taste tests, we found that many Chinese consumers could not distinguish between domestic rainbow trout and imported Atlantic salmon in blind testing.

From Salon ● Jan. 7, 2025

I brought in a ten-inch rainbow trout and skidded him up on the grass and knocked him on the head.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck