sunfish
Americannoun
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sunfish,
plural
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sunfishes
plural
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the ocean sunfish, Mola mola.
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any of various other fishes of the family Molidae.
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any of several small, brightly colored, spiny-rayed freshwater fishes of the genus Lepomis, of North America, having a deep, compressed body.
noun
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any large plectognath fish of the family Molidae, of temperate and tropical seas, esp Mola mola, which has a large rounded compressed body, long pointed dorsal and anal fins, and a fringelike tail fin
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any of various small predatory North American freshwater percoid fishes of the family Centrarchidae, typically having a compressed brightly coloured body
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sunfish
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:
The female released the sunfish just before the male struck it.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026
The hapless sunfish can weigh up to 2,000 kilograms and is distinct for both its size and peculiar shape featuring a flattened body and fins.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
In the Gulf of California, sunfish are among the animals most frequently hunted and eaten by orcas.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026
A group of killer whales have been documented blowing a sunfish to bits in an unusual underwater escapade offering never-before-seen insights into orca behaviour, according to research released Thursday.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
In California, for example, the loss of some 60,000 game fish, mostly blue- gill and other sunfish, followed an attempt to control the rice- leaf miner with dieldrin.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
In the smaller aquaria were shown the game fish of the State, a list of which comprises the black bass, crappie, sunfishes, yellow perch, white perch, warmouth bass, and the two varieties of striped bass.
From Final Report of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Commission by Louisiana Purchase Exposition Commission
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