whitefish

American  

[hwahyt-fish, wahyt-] / ˈʰwaɪtˌfɪʃ, ˈwaɪt- /

noun

whitefishes plural

1. any of several fishes of the family Coregonidae, inhabiting northern waters of North America and Eurasia, similar to the trout but having a smaller mouth and larger scales.

2. a marine food fish of California, Caulolatilus princeps.

3. any of various silvery fishes of the minnow or carp family.

4. the beluga, Delphinapterus leucas.

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whitefish British  

/ ˈwaɪtˌfɪʃ /

noun

1. any herring-like salmonoid food fish of the genus Coregonus and family Coregonidae, typically of deep cold lakes of the N hemisphere, having large silvery scales and a small head

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• whitefishes
  plural
• whitefish
  plural

Etymology

Origin of whitefish

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English; see origin at white, fish

Example Sentences

We could have been in a sailor’s tavern in Whitefish Bay in 1975.

From Slate • Nov. 10, 2025

Maybe that would cost a hundred bucks in Beverly Hills or Honolulu, but a square-inch of Abilene, Kan., or Whitefish, Mont., would be lucky to get a buck.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 9, 2025

About 30 hours later, near Michigan’s Whitefish Point and during a violent storm on Nov. 10, 1975, the big ship broke apart and sank with its 29 men.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 3, 2025

Now, he’s a founding member of the Whitefish Food and Wine Festival team.

From Salon • Sep. 7, 2024

Arrived in Whitefish this morning on a freight train.

From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer