Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Shark

Shark

(shärk)
,
Noun.
[Of uncertain origin; perhaps through OF. fr.
carcharus
a kind of dogfish, Gr.
καρχαρίας
, so called from its sharp teeth, fr.
κάρχαροσ
having sharp or jagged teeth; or perhaps named from its rapacity (cf.
Shark
,
Verb.
T.
&
I.
); cf. Corn.
scarceas
.]
1.
(Zool.)
Any one of numerous species of elasmobranch fishes of the order
Plagiostomi
, found in all seas.
☞ Some sharks, as the basking shark and the whale shark, grow to an enormous size, the former becoming forty feet or more, and the latter sixty feet or more, in length. Most of them are harmless to man, but some are exceedingly voracious. The man-eating sharks mostly belong to the genera
Carcharhinus
,
Carcharodon
, and related genera. They have several rows of large sharp teeth with serrated edges, as the great white shark (
Carcharodon carcharias
or
Carcharodon Rondeleti
) of tropical seas, and the great blue shark (
Carcharhinus glaucus
syn.
Prionace glauca
) of all tropical and temperate seas. The former sometimes becomes thirty-six feet long, and is the most voracious and dangerous species known. The rare man-eating shark of the United States coast (
Carcharodon Atwoodi
) is thought by some to be a variety, or the young, of
Carcharodon carcharias
. The dusky shark (
Carcharhinus obscurus
) is a common species on the coast of the United States of moderate size and not dangerous. It feeds on shellfish and bottom fishes.
2.
A rapacious, artful person; a sharper.
[Colloq.]
3.
Trickery; fraud; petty rapine;
as, to live upon the
shark
.
[Obs.]
South.
Basking shark
,
Liver shark
,
Nurse shark
,
Oil shark
,
Sand shark
,
Tiger shark
, etc.
See under
Basking
,
Liver
, etc. See also
Dogfish
,
Houndfish
,
Notidanian
, and
Tope
.
–
Gray shark
,
the sand shark.
–
Hammer-headed shark
.
See
Hammerhead
.
–
Port Jackson shark
.
See
Cestraciont
.
–
Shark barrow
,
the eggcase of a shark; a sea purse.
–
Shark ray
.
Same as
Angel fish
(a)
, under
Angel
.
–
Thrasher shark
or
Thresher shark
,
a large, voracious shark. See
Thrasher
.
–
Whale shark
,
a huge harmless shark (
Rhinodon typicus
) of the Indian Ocean. It becomes sixty feet or more in length, but has very small teeth.

Shark

,
Verb.
T.
[Of uncertain origin; perhaps fr.
shark
, n., or perhaps related to E.
shear
(as
hearken
to
hear
), and originally meaning, to clip off. Cf.
Shirk
.]
To pick or gather indiscriminately or covertly.
[Obs.]
Shak.

Shark

,
Verb.
I.
[
imp. & p. p.
Sharked
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Sharking
.]
1.
To play the petty thief; to practice fraud or trickery; to swindle.
Neither
sharks
for a cup or a reckoning.
Bp. Earle.
2.
To live by shifts and stratagems.
Beau. & Fl.

Webster 1828 Edition

Shark

SH'ARK

,
Noun.
[L. carcharius; Gr. from sharp.]
1. A voracious fish of the genus Squalus, of several species. The body is oblong, tapering and rough, and some species have several rows of serrated teeth. The largest grow to the length of thirty feet.
2. A greedy artful fellow; one who fills his pockets by sly tricks. [Low.]
3. Trick; fraud; petty rapine; as, to live upon the shark. [Little used.]
4. In New England, one that lives by shifts, contrivance or stratagem.

SH'ARK

,
Verb.
T.
To pick up hastily, slily or in small quantities. [Low.]

SH'ARK

,
Verb.
I.
1. To play the petty thief; or rather to live by shifts and petty stratagems. [In New England, the common pronunciation is shurk, but the word rarely implies fraud.]
2. To cheat; to trick. [Low.]
3. To fawn upon for a dinner; to beg.

Definition 2024

shark

shark

English

whitetip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus
a blacknose shark (Carcharhinus acronotus)

Wikispecies

Alternative forms

Noun

shark ‎(plural sharks)

  1. A scaleless, predatory fish of the superorder Selachimorpha, with a cartilaginous skeleton and 5 to 7 gill slits on each side of its head.
    • 1569, The true discripcion of this marueilous straunge Fishe, whiche was taken on Thursday was sennight, the xvi. day of June, this present month, in the yeare of our Lord God, M.D.lxix., a broadside printed in London, the earliest known use of the term; reprinted in A Collection of Seventy-Nine Black-Letter Ballads and Broadsides: printed in the reigh of Queen Elizabeth, between the years 1559 and 1597 in 1867:
      The straunge fishe is in length xvij. foote and iij. foote broad, and in compas about the bodie vj. foote; and is round snowted, short headdid, hauing iij. rankes of teeth on either iawe, [...]. Also it hath v. gills of eache side of the head, shoing white. Ther is no proper name for it that I know, but that sertayne men of Captayne Haukinses doth call it a sharke.
    • 2011 October 13, AP, “Man 'surfs' great white shark”, in The Guardian:
      He said he had spoken to a woman who was kayaking off Catalina Island, California, in 2008 when a shark slammed her kayak from underneath and sent her flying into the air. She then landed on the back of the shark, Collier said. "At that point the shark started to swim out to sea, so she jumped off its back," Collier said.
  2. Someone who exploits others, for example by trickery, lies, usury, extortion.
    • 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 7, in The Mirror and the Lamp:
      “[…] Churchill, my dear fellow, we have such greedy sharks, and wolves in lamb's clothing. Oh, dear, there's so much to tell you, so many warnings to give you, but all that must be postponed for the moment.”
Synonyms
  • (scaleless cartilaginous fish): haye (obsolete)
Derived terms
Translations

See also

Etymology 2

From the German Schurke ‎(“scoundrel”).

Noun

shark ‎(plural sharks)

  1. (informal, derogatory) A sleazy and amoral lawyer; an ambulance chaser.
  2. (informal) A relentless and resolute person or group, especially in business.
  3. (informal) A very good poker or pool player. Compare fish (a bad poker player).
  4. (sports and games) A person who feigns ineptitude to win money from others.
Synonyms
  • (player who feigns ineptitude to win money): hustler
Usage notes
  • The use of the term by people unfamiliar with pool is rarely well perceived by experienced players.
Derived terms
Translations

Verb

shark ‎(third-person singular simple present sharks, present participle sharking, simple past and past participle sharked)

  1. (obsolete) To steal or obtain through fraud.
  2. (obsolete, intransitive) To play the petty thief; to practice fraud or trickery; to swindle.
    • Bishop Earle
      Neither sharks for a cup or a reckoning.
  3. (obsolete, intransitive) To live by shifts and stratagems.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Beaumont and Fletcher to this entry?)
Derived terms

External links

  • shark at OneLook Dictionary Search
  • shark in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Etymology 3

Perhaps from the noun, or perhaps related to shear.

Verb

shark ‎(third-person singular simple present sharks, present participle sharking, simple past and past participle sharked)

  1. (obsolete) To pick or gather indiscriminately or covertly.
    • Shakespeare, Hamlet I.i.
      Fortinbras […] Hath […] Sharked up a list of lawless resolutes.

Anagrams

References

  1. ↑

Albanian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ʃaɾk/

Noun

shark m

  1. shell (of certain fruits like nuts, hazel, chestnut etc)
  2. skin (that covers the seed of certain fruits like peach, grape, prunes etc)
  3. snake skin
Related terms

Etymology

First attested in the 1560s, the word meaning 'scaleless fish' is of uncertain origin: it was apparently brought to England, with a specimen, by John Hawkins. The word may derive from the Yucatec Maya xoc, or it may be an application of the "scoundrel" sense (which derives from the German Schurke ‎(“scoundrel”)) to the fish; no explanation is agreed upon.[1] Mayan "xoc" is pronounced "shok".

Pronunciation

Similar Results