Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Shark
Shark
(shärk)
, Noun.
[Of uncertain origin; perhaps through OF. fr. ); cf. Corn.
carcharus
a kind of dogfish, Gr. καρχαρίας
, so called from its sharp teeth, fr. κάρχαροσ
having sharp or jagged teeth; or perhaps named from its rapacity (cf. Shark
, Verb.
T.
& I.
scarceas
.] 1.
(Zool.)
Any one of numerous species of elasmobranch fishes of the order
Plagiostomi
, found in all seas. ☞ Some sharks, as the basking shark and the whale shark, grow to an enormous size, the former becoming forty feet or more, and the latter sixty feet or more, in length. Most of them are harmless to man, but some are exceedingly voracious. The man-eating sharks mostly belong to the genera
Carcharhinus
, Carcharodon
, and related genera. They have several rows of large sharp teeth with serrated edges, as the great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias
or Carcharodon Rondeleti
) of tropical seas, and the great blue shark (Carcharhinus glaucus
syn. Prionace glauca
) of all tropical and temperate seas. The former sometimes becomes thirty-six feet long, and is the most voracious and dangerous species known. The rare man-eating shark of the United States coast (Carcharodon Atwoodi
) is thought by some to be a variety, or the young, of Carcharodon carcharias
. The dusky shark (Carcharhinus obscurus
) is a common species on the coast of the United States of moderate size and not dangerous. It feeds on shellfish and bottom fishes. 2.
A rapacious, artful person; a sharper.
[Colloq.]
3.
Trickery; fraud; petty rapine;
as, to live upon the
. shark
[Obs.]
South.
Basking shark
, Liver shark
, Nurse shark
, Oil shark
, Sand shark
, Tiger shark
, etc. Gray shark
, the sand shark.
– Hammer-headed shark
. See
– Hammerhead
. Port Jackson shark
. See
– Cestraciont
. Shark barrow
, the eggcase of a shark; a sea purse.
– Shark ray
. – Thrasher shark
or Thresher shark
a large, voracious shark. See
– Thrasher
. Whale shark
, a huge harmless shark (
Rhinodon typicus
) of the Indian Ocean. It becomes sixty feet or more in length, but has very small teeth.Shark
,Verb.
T.
[Of uncertain origin; perhaps fr.
shark
, n., or perhaps related to E. shear
(as hearken
to hear
), and originally meaning, to clip off. Cf. Shirk
.] To pick or gather indiscriminately or covertly.
[Obs.]
Shak.
Shark
,Verb.
I.
[
imp. & p. p.
Sharked
; p. pr. & vb. n.
Sharking
.] 1.
To play the petty thief; to practice fraud or trickery; to swindle.
Neither
sharks
for a cup or a reckoning. Bp. Earle.
2.
To live by shifts and stratagems.
Beau. & Fl.
Webster 1828 Edition
Shark
SH'ARK
,Noun.
1. A voracious fish of the genus Squalus, of several species. The body is oblong, tapering and rough, and some species have several rows of serrated teeth. The largest grow to the length of thirty feet.
2. A greedy artful fellow; one who fills his pockets by sly tricks. [Low.]
3. Trick; fraud; petty rapine; as, to live upon the shark. [Little used.]
4. In New England, one that lives by shifts, contrivance or stratagem.
SH'ARK
,Verb.
T.
SH'ARK
,Verb.
I.
1. To play the petty thief; or rather to live by shifts and petty stratagems. [In New England, the common pronunciation is shurk, but the word rarely implies fraud.]
2. To cheat; to trick. [Low.]
3. To fawn upon for a dinner; to beg.