herring

herring
    n 1: valuable flesh of fatty fish from shallow waters of
         northern Atlantic or Pacific; usually salted or pickled
    2: commercially important food fish of northern waters of both
       Atlantic and Pacific [syn: {herring}, {Clupea harangus}]
    

Herring \Her"ring\ (h[e^]r"r[i^]ng), n. [OE. hering, AS.
   h[ae]ring; akin to D. haring, G. h[aum]ring, hering, OHG.
   haring, hering, and prob. to AS. here army, and so called
   because they commonly move in large numbers. Cf. {Harry}.]
   (Zool.)
   One of various species of fishes of the genus {Clupea}, and
   allied genera, esp. the common round or English herring
   ({Clupea harengus}) of the North Atlantic. Herrings move in
   vast schools, coming in spring to the shores of Europe and
   America, where they are salted and smoked in great
   quantities.
   [1913 Webster]

   {Herring gull} (Zool.), a large gull which feeds in part upon
      herrings; esp., {Larus argentatus} in America, and {Larus
      cachinnans} in England. See {Gull}.

   {Herring hog} (Zool.), the common porpoise.

   {King of the herrings}. (Zool.)
   (a) The chim[ae]ra ({Chimaera monstrosa}) which follows the
       schools of herring. Called also {rabbit fish} in the U.
       K. See {Chim[ae]ra}.
   (b) The opah.
       [1913 Webster]