tarpon
Americannoun
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tarpons,
plural
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tarpon
plural
noun
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a large silvery clupeoid game fish, Tarpon atlanticus, of warm Atlantic waters, having a compressed body covered with large scales: family Elopidae
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another name for ox-eye herring
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any similar related fish
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of tarpon
1675–85; earlier tarpum, trapham, terbum, of uncertain origin; compare Dutch tarpoen; words in various Indian languages of Central America ( Miskito tapam, Sumo tahpam, Rama tā́pum, Paya ta’pam ) probably ultimately < English
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:
Our example, upfitted with the Launch Package specification, did just that, ripping away from red lights like a spooked tarpon, and me just hanging on.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
Recently, guides have been increasingly reporting that sharks are taking a bigger bite out of the tarpon catch in recent years, and may, in fact, pose a risk to the species' survival.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 22, 2024
To help manage the health of both the tarpon fishery and the hammerhead population, the researchers urge solutions that don't impact either species.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 22, 2024
Setting out into the Gulf of Mexico in threes and fours, fishermen returned with buckets of tarpon and long, streaked snook.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 13, 2023
“You could even stay at the house, do a little tarpon fishing with me and your cousins on the weekends.”
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
"It greatly expands our knowledge of the evolutionary history of tarpons, and it preserves unique and unusual features in exquisite 3D detail," he says.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 12, 2026
That did not include more than 100 manatees statewide and an untold number of fish, as well as large animals such as sharks and tarpons.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 28, 2018
We would swim with the tarpons and snorkel the reefs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 26, 2018
As bites taper off, we pull anchor and head farther upstream, eyes out for telltale rolling of feeding tarpons.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 20, 2017
We only stay one day in Osages and then go on our way to the tarpons at last, and the joys of Mexico.
From Elizabeth Visits America by Elinor Glyn
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