weakfish

American  

[week-fish] / ˈwikˌfɪʃ /

noun

plural

weakfish,

plural

weakfishes

1. any food fish of the genus Cynoscion, as C. regalis, inhabiting waters along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States.

---

weakfish British  

/ ˈwiːkˌfɪʃ /

noun

1. any of several sciaenid sea trouts, esp Cynoscion regalis, a food and game fish of American Atlantic coastal waters

---

Etymology

Origin of weakfish

An Americanism dating back to 1790–1800; from Dutch weekvis (obsolete), equivalent to week “soft, weak ” + vis fish

Example Sentences

Others depict dramatic action, like an 1829 painting of an osprey clutching a weakfish in its talons as it flies through the air.

From New York Times • Mar. 15, 2023

This overharvesting has had a devastating impact on the commercial harvest of striped bass, bluefish and weakfish over the past 22 years, with declines in harvest of 34 percent, 76 percent and 98 percent, respectively.

From Washington Post • Jul. 30, 2021

The fishing was better there, anyway: Trump and his buddies fished all day long, hauling in fluke, weakfish, and porgies, while beachgoers admired the boat from afar.

From The New Yorker • Sep. 18, 2019

“When there’s bunker in the water, I have striped bass, weakfish and bluefish for my customers to catch,” said Capt.

From New York Times • Dec. 15, 2012

He had been outside the inlet with Tod—since daybreak, in fact—fishing for bass and weakfish.

From Tides of Barnegat by Smith, Francis Hopkinson