alewife

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“
They were the products of faithful and loving hands to which nature had given a peculiar direction, perhaps, but which strove always to the best of their ability Slit herrin' was a long-dried, deep-salted edition of the native alewife, a fish in which Wallencamp abounded.

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Definitions (10)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. noun A fish (Alosa pseudoharengus) closely related to the herrings and native to North American Atlantic waters and some inland lakes.
  2. noun A woman who keeps an alehouse.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (4)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (2)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (2)

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Examples (40)

  • Among the data showed by Madenjian (from 2008 bottom trawls conducted around the lake), alewife biomass declined 30 percent from 2007 and is now at the lowest point on record. —  JSOnline.com
  • None of this is good news for trout and salmon fishermen, who have been hoping for some comeback of alewife, especially, to help sustain the sport fishery. —  JSOnline.com
  • The fish is now third on the rank of prey fish biomass in the lake (behind alewife and deepwater sculpin). —  JSOnline.com
  • According to the warrant under consideration for the April 23 vote, the town would designate an individual or company to harvest the bait fish, oversee the operation with the alewife warden and charge a fee. —  Maine News Updates - Central Maine Newspapers, Kennebec Journal, Morning Sentinel
  • • To see if the town should negotiate with NetEra Energy Resources to purchase land along the riverbank, including access from Clinton Avenue, for an alewife-harvesting site and for access for recreational paddlers and anglers. —  Maine News Updates - Central Maine Newspapers, Kennebec Journal, Morning Sentinel
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Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Probably alteration (influenced by alewife2) of obsolete allowes, a type of shad, from French alose, shad, from Old French, from Late Latin alausa.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. A particular use of alewife, prob. in allusion to their corpulent appearance (see quot.). The form aloofe, recorded in 1678, is said to be the Indian name of the fish; but it is prob. an error for alewife.
 

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/ˈeɪlwaɪf/
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