whiting

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. A pure white grade of chalk that has been ground and washed for use in paints, ink, and putty.
2. n. A food fish (Merlangus merlangus) of European Atlantic waters, related to the cod.
3. n. Any of several marine food fishes of the genera Menticirrhus and Merluccius, including the corbina and the silver hake, of North American coastal waters.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. A name given to a large number of unrelated silvery and white fishes, for example to different seiænoid, clupeoid, and gadoid fishes.
2. n. Chalk which has been dried either in the air or in a kiln, and afterward ground, levigated, and again dried. In trade it has various names, according to the amount of labor expended on it to make it fine and free from grit, there being ordinary or commercial whiting, then Spanish white, then gilders' whiting, and finally Paris white, which is the best grade. Whiting is used in fine whitewashing, in distemper painting, cleaning plate, making putty, as an adulterant in various processes, as a base for picture-moldings, etc. Also whitening.
3. n. A gadoid fish of Europe, Merlangus vulgaris, or another of this genus. It abounds on the British coast, and is highly esteemed for food. It in commonly from 12 to 18 inches long, and of one or two pounds weight, though it grows much larger. It is readily distinguished from the haddock and some other related fishes by the absence of a barbule. The flesh is of a pearly whiteness.
4. n. In the United States, one of several sciænoid fishes of the genus Menticirrus, as M. americanus. The silver whiting, or surf-whiting, is M. littoralis.
5. n. The silver hake, Merlucius biline-aris.
6. n. The menhaden.

Wiktionary

1. n. A fine white chalk used in paints, putty, whitewash etc.
2. n. In full whiting tree. (see variant whitten).
3. n. A fish, Merlangius merlangus, similar to cod, found in the North Atlantic.
4. n. Any of several marine fish found in North American coastal waters, including Merluccius bilinearis (the silver hake).

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. A common European food fish (Melangus vulgaris) of the Codfish family; -- called also fittin.
2. n. A North American fish (Merlucius vulgaris) allied to the preceding; -- called also silver hake.
3. n. Any one of several species of North American marine sciænoid food fishes belonging to genus Menticirrhus, especially Menticirrhus Americanus, found from Maryland to Brazil, and Menticirrhus littoralis, common from Virginia to Texas; -- called also silver whiting, and surf whiting.
4. n. Chalk prepared in an impalpable powder by pulverizing and repeated washing, used as a pigment, as an ingredient in putty, for cleaning silver, etc.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a food fish of the Atlantic waters of Europe resembling the cod; sometimes placed in genus Gadus
2. n. any of several food fishes of North American coastal waters
3. n. flesh of a cod-like fish of the Atlantic waters of Europe
4. n. found off Atlantic coast of North America
5. n. flesh of any of a number of slender food fishes especially of Atlantic coasts of North America
6. n. a small fish of the genus Sillago; excellent food fish