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Glite Dictionary
sculpin

sculpin

1 9.9
A fish with a large head, spiny fins, and no scales that lives in rivers and rocky coasts
  • noun
  • /ˈskʌlpɪn/
translation icon : escorpión
  • The aquarium displayed a variety of fish, including the interesting sculpin, known for its spiny head.
  • staghorn sculpin
  • blob sculpin
  • sculpin lakes

Examples

  • Such scouring events can reduce sculpin populations by up to 70% (Swanson et al. 1998).

    Academic text (2013)

  • I pulled in a few sculpin this morning from the shore.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • Burbot feed on sculpin and other fish.

    Academic text (1999)

  • I wanted to catch some sculpin and pogey for my thirty-eighth name day dinner.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • We put out bait that any sensible person would say would get us nothing but sculpin, and by Almighty, we got ourselves a halibut.

    The Golden Boys (2008)

  • While fishing at the lake, we caught several sculpin that were swimming near the rocks.

  • The sculpin is a unique fish often found hiding among rocks and debris in both freshwater and saltwater.

Surface Forms

sculpin singular
sculpins plural

Etymology

The word sculpin probably comes from an old French name for a similar fish, and English kept that name for this spiny, large-headed fish. A helpful way to remember sculpin is to picture a small rock-dwelling fish with a 'sculpted' big head and sharp spines, which is why the word means that kind of fish today.