Main Entry: ¹por·poise

Pronunciation: \ˈpȯr-pəs\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English porpoys, from Anglo-French porpeis, from Medieval Latin porcopiscis, from Latin porcus pig + piscis fish — more at farrow, fish

Date: 14th century

1 : any of a family (Phocoenidae) of small gregarious toothed whales; especially : a blunt-snouted usually largely black whale (Phocoena phocoena) of the North Atlantic and North Pacific that is five to eight feet (1.5 to 2.4 meters) long
2 : dolphin 1a(1)