steelhead

[ steel-hed ]

/ ˈstilˌhɛd /

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noun, plural steel·heads, (especially collectively) steel·head.

a silvery rainbow trout that migrates to the sea before returning to fresh water to spawn.

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Origin of steelhead

First recorded in 1580–90; steel + head

Words nearby steelhead

steel engraving, steel-faced, steel gray, steel grey, steel guitar, steelhead, steelie, steel lumber, steelmaker, steelmaking, steelman

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use steelhead in a sentence

For the first time in 54 years, Barbara Brown won’t be fishing for summer-run steelhead on the Grande Ronde River in southwest Washington State.
Why I’m Not Fishing the Grande Ronde River This Year|abarronian|October 16, 2021|Outside Online
In fact, most studies estimate the direct lethal effects of that manner of fishing on steelhead to be around 10 percent.
Why I’m Not Fishing the Grande Ronde River This Year|abarronian|October 16, 2021|Outside Online
Unlike any of my bank-account passwords, the feeling of a steelhead grabbing my swung fly and immediately launching itself airborne cannot and will never be forgotten.
Why I’m Not Fishing the Grande Ronde River This Year|abarronian|October 16, 2021|Outside Online
I am finished letting my ego write checks that wild steelhead can’t cash.
Why I’m Not Fishing the Grande Ronde River This Year|abarronian|October 16, 2021|Outside Online

More than $17 billion spent to restore salmon and steelhead in the Snake River and its tributaries in the Pacific Northwest has largely fallen short, he said.
EPA to protect Alaska’s Bristol Bay, blocking major gold mine|Dino Grandoni, Josh Partlow|September 9, 2021|Washington Post
The other claim that the larger scales of the rainbow is a distinguishing feature from the steelhead is not founded on facts.
Game Birds and Game Fishes of the Pacific Coast|Harry Thom Payne
As a game fish the steelhead enjoys a high reputation in the Pacific States.
The Salmon Fishery of Penobscot Bay and River in 1895-96|Hugh M. Smith
There is no more beautiful thing in the wilderness world than a steelhead trout in action.
The Voice of the Pack|Edison Marshall
The Rogue and the Umpqua flooded and the great steelhead began to ascend their smaller tributaries.
The Voice of the Pack|Edison Marshall
Steelhead and German brown trout will also be found in the river.
Guide to Yosemite|Ansel Hall

British Dictionary definitions for steelhead

steelhead

/ (ˈstiːlˌhɛd) /

noun plural -heads or -head

a silvery North Pacific variety of the rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri)

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