mackerel
pronunciation
How to pronounce mackerel in British English:
UK [ˈmækrəl]
How to pronounce mackerel in American English:
US [ˈmækərəl, ˈmækrəl]
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- Noun:
- flesh of very important usually small (to 18 in) fatty Atlantic fish
- any of various fishes of the family Scombridae
Word Origin
- mackerel (n.)
- edible fish, c. 1300, from Old French maquerel "mackerel" (Modern French maquereau), of unknown origin but apparently identical with Old French maquerel "pimp, procurer, broker, agent, intermediary," a word from a Germanic source (compare Middle Dutch makelaer "broker," from Old Frisian mek "marriage," from maken "to make"). The connection is obscure, but medieval people had imaginative notions about the erotic habits of beasts. The fish approach the shore in shoals in summertime to spawn. Exclamation holy mackerel is attested from 1876.
Example
- 1. Such as tilefish , swordfish , shark , king mackerel .
- 2. Examples of oily fish include trout , salmon , herring , mackerel , or fresh tuna .
- 3. Alien plants , birds , fish and animals are creeping north : atlantic mackerel , haddock and cod are coming up in arctic nets .
- 4. The sharks congregated in two areas , with one group feeding on the fish eggs of spawning little tunny ( euthynnus alletteratus ) , a member of the mackerel family ; the other group feeding on copepods ( small crustaceans ) and shrimp .
- 5. And I 'm very grateful to the oysters , mackerel , trout and sardines that gave me that energy .