crayfish

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a small freshwater crustacean resembling a lobster, or its flesh used as food

   We found a crayfish hiding beneath a stone in the stream.

2. 2
   noun

   in some varieties of English, a spiny lobster or another similar marine crustacean

   The divers saw a large rock crayfish retreat into a crevice.

Simplified etymology

Crayfish entered Middle English from Old French crevice, modern French écrevisse, and is probably related to crab. In the 16th century its ending was reshaped as fish because the animal lives in water, although it is a crustacean. The variant crawfish has existed since at least the 17th century and is now chiefly American.

Altered by association with fish from Middle English crevis, borrowed from Old French crevice, 'crayfish,' of Germanic origin. The animal is a crustacean, not a fish; the modern spelling is therefore the result of folk etymology.

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