tyee
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of tyee
An Americanism dating back to 1790–1800; from Chinook Jargon: literally, “chief, boss,” from Nuu-chah-nulth (Nootka) ta·yi· “elder brother, senior”); as a name for the fish perhaps analogous with king salmon
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.
A Chinook that weighs more than 30 pounds is called a tyee.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2018
The proudest moment of my fishing career came when I caught my first and only tyee.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2018
Very shortly, the magistrate pounded his gavel; His verdict was clearly a stunner: “When the gentlemen differ in manner of travel, The tyee must go to the runner.”
From Washington Post ● Jul. 21, 2016
The tyee of the crowd introduced himself as Lord Jim.
From Blazing The Way True Stories, Songs and Sketches of Puget Sound by Denny, Emily Inez
Mr. Layard could not induce them to touch anything from the bank, but a tyee of 18lb. was hooked on a spoon and lost two days afterwards by another man from a canoe.
From Fishing in British Columbia With a Chapter on Tuna Fishing at Santa Catalina by Lambert, Thomas Wilson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
