/ English Dictionary |
STICKLEBACK
Pronunciation (US): | (GB): |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Small (2-4 inches) pugnacious mostly scaleless spiny-backed fishes of northern fresh and littoral waters having elaborate courtship; subjects of much research
Synonyms:
prickleback; stickleback
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("stickleback" is a kind of...):
acanthopterygian; spiny-finned fish (a teleost fish with fins that are supported by sharp inflexible rays)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "stickleback"):
Gasterosteus aculeatus; three-spined stickleback (of rivers and coastal regions)
Gasterosteus pungitius; ten-spined stickleback (confined to rivers)
Holonyms ("stickleback" is a member of...):
family Gasterosteidae; Gasterosteidae (sticklebacks)