herring

[ her-ing ]

noun

, plural (especially collectively) her·ring, (especially referring to two or more kinds or species) her·rings.

1. an important food fish, Clupea harengus harengus, found in enormous shoals in the North Atlantic.
2. a similar fish, Clupea harengus pallasii, of the North Pacific.
3. any fish of the family Clupeidae, including herrings, shads, and sardines.
4. any of various fishes resembling the herring but of unrelated families.

herring

/ ˈhɛrɪŋ /

noun

1. any marine soft-finned teleost fish of the family Clupeidae, esp Clupea harengus, an important food fish of northern seas, having an elongated body covered, except in the head region, with large fragile silvery scales

Other Words From

• herring·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of herring¹

before 900; Middle English hering, Old English hǣring; cognate with German Häring

Word History and Origins

Origin of herring¹

Old English hǣring; related to Old High German hāring, Old Frisian hēring, Dutch haring

Idioms and Phrases

see dead as a doornail (herring) ; red herring .

Example Sentences

Hookers Ronan Kelleher and Rob Herring have also been selected despite their recent injury troubles while Leinster's uncapped Gus McCarthy is one of five training panellists along with Thomas Clarkson, Alex Kendellen, Shayne Bolton and Jack Boyle.

From BBC

The Herring gull, the species most people probably associate with “seagulls,” was nearly wiped out along the Atlantic coast.

From Salon

Herring gull populations declined around 76% in North America since 1966.

From Salon

The herring gull was already on the list.

From Salon

“I think that if everything I and my colleagues dread were to happen, and herring gulls … become extremely rare, they might actually get a lot of respect then.”

From Salon