thornback

American  

[thawrn-bak] / ˈθɔrnˌbæk /

noun

1. a skate, Raja clavata, of European waters, having short spines on the back and tail.

2. a California ray, Platyrhinoidis triseriatus, belonging to the guitarfish group.

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thornback British  

/ ˈθɔːnˌbæk /

noun

1. a European ray, Raja clavata, having a row of spines along the back and tail

2. a similar fish, Platyrhinoidis triseriata, of the Pacific Ocean

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Etymology

Origin of thornback

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at thorn, back ¹

Example Sentences

She foundered at sea, whether going or returning is not said; in consequence, we are told, of injuries received from the stroke of a whale, of the thornback species.

From The Life of Francis Marion by Simms, William Gilmore

Those which I remember to have seen there of the kinds that are not eaten are the whale, porpoise, shark, dogfish, gar, stingray, thornback, sawfish, toadfish, frogfish, land crabs, fiddlers, and periwinkle.

From The Bounty of the Chesapeake Fishing in Colonial Virginia by Wharton, James

Cod, haddock, flounders, plaice, skate, thornback, mullets, pike, carp, eels, shellfish, except oysters; mackarel the first two months, but are not good in August.—Vegetables.

From The Cook and Housekeeper's Complete and Universal Dictionary; Including a System of Modern Cookery, in all Its Various Branches, Adapted to the Use of Private Families by Eaton, Mary, fl. 1823-1849

Carp, tench, perch, eels, lampreys, crayfish, cod, soles, flounders, plaice, turbot, skate, thornback, sturgeon, smelts, whitings, crabs, lobsters, prawns, oysters.—Vegetables.

From The Cook and Housekeeper's Complete and Universal Dictionary; Including a System of Modern Cookery, in all Its Various Branches, Adapted to the Use of Private Families by Eaton, Mary, fl. 1823-1849

It is these purses, and those of the thornback and the edible skate, that we oftenest pick up on the English coast.

From Science in Arcady by Allen, Grant