sandfish

[ sand-fish ]

noun

, plural (especially collectively) sand·fish, (especially referring to two or more kinds or species) sand·fish·es.

1. either of two scaleless fishes of the family Trichodontidae, of the North Pacific Ocean, that live in sand or mud.
2. Also called beaked salmon. a fish, Gonorhynchus gonorhynchus, inhabiting the sandy areas of the western Pacific and Indian Oceans, having an angular snout with which it burrows into the sand.
3. belted sandfish ( def ).

Word History and Origins

Origin of sandfish¹

First recorded in 1895–1900; sand + fish

Example Sentences

The sandfish, a lizard about the size of a hand, can virtually dive and swim through it, whipping and churning its legs to take advantage of sand’s fluid or solid properties.

From Wall Street Journal

They are believed to be North Korean fishing boats, many of which will have been out searching for king crab, squid and sandfish at this time of year.

From BBC

Dr. Goldman and his colleagues had done a lot of research on a lizard called the sandfish.

From New York Times

He has spent a lot of time studying the sandfish, “a little lizard that swims in sand.”

From New York Times

“The biological inspiration for our sand-swimming robot is the sandfish lizard, which inhabits the Sahara desert in Africa and rapidly buries into and swims within sand,” explained Goldman.

From US News