Stickleback
noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any one of numerous species of small fish of the family Gasterosteidae. The back is armed with two or more sharp spines. They inhabit both salt and brackish water, and construct nests from weeds.
"[I]n my exile and irkeſome diſcontented abandonment, the ſillieſt millers thombe, or contemptible ſtickle-banck of my enemies, is as buſie nibbling about my fame, as if I were a deade man throwne amongeſt them to feede vpon."
- 2 small (2-4 inches) pugnacious mostly scaleless spiny-backed fishes of northern fresh and littoral waters having elaborate courtship; subjects of much research wordnet
Example
More examples"The freshwater stickleback fish was introduced into the tank."
Etymology
From dialectal stickle (“a prickle, spine, sting”), from Old English sticel + bæc. See stick (transitive verb) and compare banstickle.
Related phrases
More for "stickleback"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.