noun, verb, slang ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   Any of various freshwater crustaceans: crayfish. Louisiana, Southern-US, Texas, US, Western, countable, especially, uncountable
2. 2
   large edible marine crustacean having a spiny carapace but lacking the large pincers of true lobsters wordnet
3. 3
   Any of various marine crustaceans, rock lobster; especially Jasus lalandii, the Cape crawfish. South-Africa, countable, uncountable
4. 4
   small freshwater decapod crustacean that resembles a lobster wordnet
5. 5
   An English-Canadian. Used in some corners of Quebec (including the Gaspé). Canada, Quebec, countable, derogatory, slang, uncountable

Show 1 more definition

6. 6
   tiny lobster-like crustaceans usually boiled briefly wordnet

Verb

1. 1
   To fish for crawfish. intransitive
2. 2
   make a retreat from an earlier commitment or activity wordnet
3. 3
   To backpedal, desert or withdraw (also used with out). Southern-US, colloquial, intransitive

   "I have never been one to flinch or crawfish when faced with an unpleasant task."

Synonyms

All synonyms

crawdadcrayfishback awayback outclamcrab

Example

More examples

"I have never been one to flinch or crawfish when faced with an unpleasant task."

Etymology

1620s, folk etymology from Middle English crevis, from Old French crevice (French écrevisse), influenced by fish. Compare crayfish.

Related phrases

anglo canadian

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.