cusk

[ kuhsk ]

noun

, plural cusks, (especially collectively) cusk.

1. an edible marine fish, Brosme brosme, of North Atlantic coastal waters.
2. the burbot.

cusk

/ kʌsk /

noun

1. a gadoid food fish, Brosmius brosme, of northern coastal waters, having a single long dorsal fin aslo called torsk

Word History and Origins

Origin of cusk¹

An Americanism dating back to 1610–20; probably a variant of tusk, a kind of fish, from Scandinavian; compare Norwegian tosk, variant of torsk, cognate with Old Norse thorskr “cod, codfish”

Word History and Origins

Origin of cusk¹

C17: probably alteration of tusk of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse thorskr codfish

Example Sentences

Usually found in deep water, the adult gargoyle cusk eel is extremely rare and represents the only member of its genus.

From Scientific American

Mike and I groan, thinking back on all the time and energy we’ve wasted chipping out iced-over cusk lines with crowbars.

From New York Times

The Nautilus team just discovered a whale skeleton on the seafloor covered in bone-eating worms, cusk eels, and octopus devouring this massive deep sea meal.

From The Verge

Jeff Milisen, a professional photographer who is based in Hawaii, captured several stunning images of rarely seen creatures that make their home in the depths of the ocean, including black cusk eels and sea butterflies.

From Fox News

The data puzzled biologists, who compared the cusk eels and other species to "Olympic athletes" for their unique abilities to survive in such brutal conditions.

From Fox News