herring

B2 Topic:Food & Drink

Also spelled herrin’s

US /ˈhɛɹɪŋ/ UK /ˈhɛrɪŋ/ See IPA manual

Freq #13644

Meanings

1

noun
a small oily sea fish often eaten as food

The fishermen brought barrels of herring to market.
2

noun
the flesh of a herring used as food

They served smoked herring with bread.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a small oily sea fish often... clupeid fish

2 noun · the flesh of a herring used... herring fish

Word family

Derived forms herringsherringboneherringlike

Related forms kipperstockfish

Appears in

Phrases (1)

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lake herring
a freshwater food fish of cold North American lakes, also called cisco

Noun + noun

Idioms (1)

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red herring
a misleading clue or distraction that draws attention away from the real issue

Etymology

From Old English haering, from a West Germanic word for herring. The deeper origin is uncertain, possibly linked to hair because of the fish's many fine bones.

Topics

Food & Drink

External links

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