dolphin
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈdɒlf.ɪn/
ipa: [ˈdɒl̥fɪn]
ipa: /ˈdɑlf.ɪn/
ipa: [ˈdɑl̥fɪn]
Forms: form: dolphins
Etymology: From Middle English delphyn, from Latin delphīnus, from Ancient Greek δελφίς (delphís), from δελφύς (delphús, “womb”); the modern form in -ol- is probably influenced by the pronunciation of Middle French dauphin. Compare Swedish delfin. Doublet of dauphin. Displaced native Old English mereswīn (literally “sea pig”).
Senses: synonyms: mereswine
sea goose
sea pig
glosses: A carnivorous aquatic mammal in one of several families of the infraorder Cetacea, famed for its intelligence and occasional willingness to approach humans.
synonyms: mereswine
sea goose
sea pig
glosses: A carnivorous aquatic mammal in one of several families of the infraorder Cetacea, famed for its intelligence and occasional willingness to approach humans.
Tursiops truncatus, (Atlantic bottlenose dolphin) the most well-known species.
glosses: A fish, the mahi-mahi or dorado, Coryphaena hippurus, with a dorsal fin that runs the length of the body, also known for iridescent coloration.
topics: government
heraldry
hobbies
lifestyle
monarchy
nobility
politics
glosses: A depiction of a fish, with a broad indented fin, usually embowed.
glosses: The dauphin, eldest son of the kings of France.
topics: history
human-sciences
sciences
glosses: A mass of iron or lead hung from the yardarm, in readiness to be dropped through the deck and the hull of an enemy's vessel to sink it.
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: A kind of wreath or strap of plaited cordage.
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: A spar or buoy held by an anchor and furnished with a ring to which ships may fasten their cables.
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: A mooring post on a wharf or beach.
examples: text: At each end of the piers in the water, in cases where several rows of pile are driven, a sort of cutwater should be formed, in order to ward off heavy bodies, such as floating trees, ice, etc. and prevent them from injuring the superstructure (called in German constructions, "Eisbrecher," or ice-breaker). This is usually done by driving one pile by itself in advance of the rest, or by forming what is called a "dolphin" at each end of the pier.
ref: 1844, The Technical Educator, an encyclopædia, page 107:
text: An ice-breaker or dolphin was also constructed during the latter part of the autumn, a little above the site for No. 2 dam, or that for the twoer nearest the Pesth shore; this dolphin, which served as a protection against the ice, rafts, &c. was constructed at this time, so that a means might be afforded of judging of the actual force of the ice during the winter ensuing; and the event proved that its construction was most fortunate, as the winter of 1840-41 was unusually severe.
ref: 1852, William Tierney Clark, An Account, with illustrations, of the Suspension Bridge across the River Danube, uniting Pesth with Buda and the adjacent country, in the Kingdom of Hungary, etc, page 37:
text: The Dolphin is now seldom used, but a rope treated in the same manner, with mousings raised on it at regular intervals, is sometimes put around a Launch, just below the gunwale outside and secured there as a sort of permanent fender; this also is called a Dolphin.
ref: 1868, Stephen Bleecker Luce, Seamanship, page 28:
text: For a dolphin or buoy to be placed on the south point of Goat Island, in the harbor of Newport, one hundred and fifty dollars.
ref: 1852, The Congressional Globe: Volume 32, page xxx:
text: Sometimes a stoppage would take place owing to the accumulation of ice between the Dolphin and the dam, which kept that above back until a mass of ice more resembling an island than anything else it can be compared to, would force the whole mass before it, breaking up the large blocks accumulated at the dam into a thousand pieces.
ref: 1860 March 31, “Victoria Bridge”, in American Railroad Journal, volume 16, number 13:
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: A permanent fender designed to protect a heavy boat, bridge, or coastal structure from the impact of large floating objects such as ice, floating logs, or vessels.
topics: government
military
politics
war
glosses: One of the handles above the trunnions by which a gun was lifted.
glosses: A person who buys shares on the primary market only to resell them immediately at a high profit.
Hypernyms: mereswine
Derived terms: word: Amazon dolphin
word: Amazon river dolphin
taxonomic: Inia geoffrensis
word: Amazon River dolphin
taxonomic: Delphinus delphis
word: Arabian common dolphin
taxonomic: Inia araguaiaensis
word: Araguaian river dolphin
taxonomic: Sousa teuszii
word: Atlantic humpback dolphin
taxonomic: Stenella frontalis
word: Atlantic spotted dolphin
taxonomic: Lagenorhynchus acutus
word: Atlantic white-sided dolphin
taxonomic: Orcaella heinsohni
word: Australian snubfin dolphin
taxonomic: Cephalorhynchus eutropia
word: black dolphin
taxonomic: Platanista gangetica
word: blind river dolphin
taxonomic: Tursiops spp.
word: bottlenose dolphin
taxonomic: Cephalorhynchus eutropia
word: Chilean dolphin
word: Chinese river dolphin
word: Chinese white dolphin
word: Clymene dolphin
word: Commerson's dolphin
taxonomic: Delphinus delphis
word: common dolphin
word: delphine
word: dolphinarium
word: dolphin dive
word: dolphinese
word: dolphinet
taxonomic: Coryphaena spp.
word: dolphinfish
taxonomic: Aphis fabae
word: dolphin fly
word: dolphin-friendly
word: dolphin hugger
word: dolphining
word: dolphin kick
word: dolphinkind
word: dolphinless
word: dolphinlike
word: dolphin shorts
word: dolphinspeak
word: dolphin striker
taxonomic: Lagenorhynchus obscurus
word: dusky dolphin
word: flog the dolphin
word: Fraser's dolphin
taxonomic: Platanista gangetica
word: Ganges River dolphin
word: green dolphin
word: Guiana dolphin
taxonomic: Cephalorhynchus heavisidii
word: Heaviside's dolphin
taxonomic: Cephalorhynchus hectori
word: Hector's dolphin
taxonomic: Lagenorhynchus cruciger
word: hourglass dolphin
taxonomic: Sousa spp.
word: humpback dolphin
word: Indian humpback dolphin
taxonomic: Sousa plumbea
word: Indian Ocean bottlenose dolphin
taxonomic: Sousa chinensis
word: Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin
taxonomic: Platanista minor
word: Indus River dolphin
word: Irrawaddy dolphin
word: La Plata dolphin
taxonomic: Delphinus delphis
word: long-beaked common dolphin
taxonomic: Cephalorhynchus hectori
word: Māui dolphin
word: oceanic dolphin
taxonomic: Sousa chinensis
word: Pacific humpback dolphin
word: Pacific white-sided dolphin
word: panda dolphin
word: pantropical spotted dolphin
word: Peale's dolphin
word: piebald dolphin
word: pink dolphin
word: pink river dolphin
word: right whale dolphin
word: Risso's dolphin
word: river dolphin
taxonomic: Steno bredanensis
word: rough-toothed dolphin
word: Sarawak dolphin
taxonomic: Delphinus delphis
word: short-beaked common dolphin
taxonomic: Platanista gangetica
word: side-swimming dolphin
word: skunk dolphin
word: South Asian river dolphin
taxonomic: Lissodelphis peronii
word: southern right whale dolphin
taxonomic: Stenella longirostris
word: spinner dolphin
word: spotted dolphin
taxonomic: Stenella coeruleoalba
word: striped dolphin
word: wax the dolphin
taxonomic: Lagenorhynchus albirostris
word: white-beaked dolphin
word: whitefin dolphin
word: white-sided dolphin
word: wholphin
word: Yangtze river dolphin
word: Yangtze dolphin
alt: †Lipotes vexillifer
word: Yangtze River dolphin
Related terms: cetacean
killer whale
pod
porpoise
sea lion
seal
whale