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milt

milt

1 9.9
A liquid a male fish releases that contains sperm to fertilize eggs
  • noun
  • /mɪlt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : milt
  • As spring approached, the river was filled with fish releasing milt and eggs in a spectacular display.
  • milt and eggs
  • release milt
  • males released milt

Examples

  • Butter-fried herring milts are a surprise hit too and taste so strong they must be amazingly healthy!

    Blog text (28)
  • They drop that pike's milt into this lake.

  • Once found, the males release milt, the milky white sperm that signals the school to follow.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Opakapaka caught during this time were in spawning condition; some females released eggs and males released milt.

    Academic text (1993)
  • Brief season of red and spawn when brook trout and chill quick shallows once dug into gravel to let nested eggs mix with milt and turn pearls.

  • During the spawning season, male fish expel milt into the water to fertilize the female's eggs.

  • The biologist collected milt from several male trout for the study of fish reproduction.

Synonyms

testis
vsmilt
  • Specialized
4 7.1

One of the two male glands that make sperm and the hormone testosterone

is specific to fish, meaning the sperm-filled gland or seminal fluid
ejaculate
vsmilt
  • Offensive
3 8.7

Thick white fluid that comes from a man's penis and contains sperm

is specific to fish and can mean the gland as well as fluid
soft roe
vsmilt
  • Specialized
8.6

A soft, creamy part of a fish that holds sperm and people eat

is the biological term without focus on food or creamy texture

Surface Forms

milt singular
milts plural

Etymology

Milt comes from an old English word for 'soft inner parts' or organs, so it was used for the sperm-filled gland or milky fluid of a male fish. A helpful way to remember it is that milt sounds like 'milk', which brings to mind a soft, milky liquid and so links to the fish's reproductive fluid.