sterlet

[ stur-lit ]

noun

a small sturgeon, Acipenser ruthenus, of the Black and Caspian seas, valued as a source of caviar.

Origin of sterlet

1585–95; <Russian stérlyad',Old Russian sterlyagi (plural) <German Störling a small sturgeon, equivalent to Stör sturgeon (Middle High German stör(e), stür(e), Old High German stur(i)o;cf. sturgeon) + -ling-ling¹

Words Nearby sterlet

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

How to use sterlet in a sentence

A favourite fish among the higher classes is the sterlet, a sort of sturgeon; soup is made of it, but it is very expensive.
Fred Markham in Russia | W. H. G. Kingston
At supper they served sterlet, chicken rissoles, and stewed fruit; the wines were expensive French wines.
The Lady With The Dog and Other Stories | Anton Chekhov
There can be no doubt that the sturgeon or sterlet is meant by this term, for Platina calls the eggs of the fish “caviare.”
Cooking and Dining in Imperial Rome | Apicius
Does not this animal fulfil in the egg of the sterlet, the same office as the histriobdella in the egg of the lobster?
Animal Parasites and Messmates | P. J. Van Beneden
Polypodium hydriforme Ussow is a fresh-water form parasitic on the eggs of the sterlet.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 14, Slice 2 | Various

British Dictionary definitions for sterlet

sterlet

/ (ˈstɜːlɪt) /

noun

a small sturgeon, Acipenser ruthenus, of seas and rivers in N Asia and E Europe: used as a food fish and a source of caviar

Origin of sterlet

C16: from Russian sterlyad, of Germanic origin; compare Old High German sturio sturgeon

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

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