whelk

1
[ welk, hwelk ]
See synonyms for whelk on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. any of several large, spiral-shelled, marine gastropods of the family Buccinidae, especially Buccinum undatum, that is used for food in Europe.

Origin of whelk

1
before 900; late Middle English, aspirated variant of Middle English welk,Old English weoloc

Words Nearby whelk

Other definitions for whelk (2 of 2)

whelk2
[ welk, hwelk ]

noun
  1. a pimple or pustule.

Origin of whelk

2
before 1000; Middle English whelke,Old English hwylca, hwelca; akin to wheal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use whelk in a sentence

  • As he grows he needs a larger house, and so leaves the tight shell and pops his tail into a bigger one, generally a whelk shell.

    On the Seashore | R. Cadwallader Smith
  • Some of them would swallow the whelk shell, crab and all, but they would not eat one on which an Anemone was fixed.

    On the Seashore | R. Cadwallader Smith
  • The whelk, however, is a clever burglar; he knows how to make a way into the hardest of shelly houses.

    On the Seashore | R. Cadwallader Smith
  • Now we will look at a shell-builder, the whelk, who uses his flinty tongue in quite another fashion.

    On the Seashore | R. Cadwallader Smith
  • The whelk and his cousins know how to bore a hole in the shell, and suck out the helpless Oyster.

    On the Seashore | R. Cadwallader Smith

British Dictionary definitions for whelk (1 of 2)

whelk1

/ (wɛlk) /


noun
  1. any carnivorous marine gastropod mollusc of the family Buccinidae, of coastal waters and intertidal regions, having a strong snail-like shell

Origin of whelk

1
Old English weoloc; related to Middle Dutch willok, Old Norse vil entrails

British Dictionary definitions for whelk (2 of 2)

whelk2

/ (wɛlk) /


noun
  1. a raised lesion on the skin; wheal

Origin of whelk

2
Old English hwylca, of obscure origin

Derived forms of whelk

  • whelky, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012