What does "ling" mean?
Any of various marine food fish, of the genus Molva, resembling the cod.
Ling
/lɪŋ/ name, noun, slang
name, noun, slang ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Any of various marine food fish, of the genus Molva, resembling the cod.
- Grammar: ling is listed as name, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: broom, burbot, calluna vulgaris, cusk.
- Useful contrasts: land animal, nonlinguistics.
- Usage evidence: Grandma Ling died with unfinished business. It is said that to this day no one has dared to live in that house.
How to use "ling"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "ling" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "ling" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "ling" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "ling" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "ling" is acting as name, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "broom" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "ling", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any of various marine food fish, of the genus Molva, resembling the cod. countable, uncountable
"Other deep creatures now being harvested or targeted as seafood include rattails, skates, squid, red crabs, orange roughy, black oreos, smooth oreos, hoki, blue ling, southern blue whiting, sablefish, black scabbard fish and spiny dogfish."
- 2 Any of various varieties of heather or broom. countable, uncountable
- 3 Clipping of linguistics. abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, informal, uncountable
- 4 elongate freshwater cod of northern Europe and Asia and North America having barbels around its mouth wordnet
- 5 A common ling (Molva molva). countable, uncountable
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 Any of various varieties of heather or broom.; Common heather (Calluna vulgaris) countable, uncountable
"I was sitting by a path on a tussock between some bushes, whence I could overlook the path and a little valley to which it led down, and where nothing but ling and heather grew."
- 7 American hakes wordnet
- 8 elongated marine food fish of Greenland and northern Europe; often salted and dried wordnet
- 9 common Old World heath represented by many varieties; low evergreen grown widely in the Northern Hemisphere wordnet
- 10 water chestnut whose spiny fruit has two rather than 4 prongs wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Antonyms
land animalnonlinguistics
Example
"Grandma Ling died with unfinished business. It is said that to this day no one has dared to live in that house."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "ling"?
Common synonyms include: broom, burbot, calluna vulgaris, cusk, eelpout, fish.
How do you use "ling" in a sentence?
Grandma Ling died with unfinished business. It is said that to this day no one has dared to live in that house.
How do you pronounce "ling"?
Pronounced /lɪŋ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English lenge, from Middle French leynge (compare French lingue), from Middle Dutch *lenge (modern Dutch leng). Cognate with Old Norse langa. Probably related to long.
Etymology 2
From Middle English lyng, from Old Norse lyng.
Etymology 3
From Mandarin 令 (Lìng)， 凌 (Líng) or Eastern Min 林 (Lìng).