trout

American  

[trout] / traʊt /

noun

plural

trout,

plural

trouts

1. any of several game fishes of the genus Salmo, related to the salmon.

2. any of various game fishes of the salmon family of the genus Salvelinus.

3. any of several unrelated fishes, as a bass, Micropterus salmoides, a drum of the genus Cynoscion, or a greenling of the genus Hexagrammos.

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trout British  

/ traʊt /

noun

1. any of various game fishes, esp Salmo trutta and related species, mostly of fresh water in northern regions: family Salmonidae (salmon). They resemble salmon but are smaller and spotted

2. any of various similar or related fishes, such as a sea trout

3. any of various fishes of the Salmo or Oncorhynchus genera smaller than the salmon, esp European and American varieties naturalized in Australia

4. informal an irritating or grumpy person, esp a woman

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Other Word Forms

• troutless adjective
• troutlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of trout

before 1050; Middle English trou ( h ) te, Old English truht < Latin tructa < Greek trṓktēs gnawer, a sea fish, equivalent to trṓg ( ein ) to gnaw + -tēs agent noun suffix

Compare meaning

How does trout compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• steelhead vs. trout

Explanation

A trout is a kind of fish that lives mainly in lakes and rivers. People like to eat trout, and so do eagles and brown bears. Trout are freshwater fish, although some species, including rainbow trout, divide their time between fresh water and the ocean. The coloring of an individual type of trout depends on where it lives, since its skin works as a kind of camouflage. If it's spent a few years in the ocean, a trout's skin often turns silvery. The source of the word trout is thought to be the Greek troktes, "nibbler."

Example Sentences

The waterways that figure so prominently in the story—the Madison, among them—are aboil with trout.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026

Populations of Chinook salmon, steelhead trout, Delta smelt and other species have been declining.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 15, 2025

A recent independent U.K. report on the nuclear sector found it would spare the lives of 0.028 sea trout, six river lamprey, 18 allis shad and 528 twaite shad every year.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 12, 2025

The smoked rainbow trout and slow-smoked mackerel with chili flakes are my personal favorites, but Fishwife’s selection includes salmon, tuna, mussels, sardines, and even beautifully packaged caviar.

From Salon • Dec. 4, 2025

“I wonder if there’s any trout in here,” he said, staring into the water.

From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston