shrimp

¹shrimp

noun \ˈshrimp, especially Southern ˈsrimp\

plural shrimps or shrimp

Definition of SHRIMP

1

: any of numerous mostly small and marine decapod crustaceans (suborders Dendrobranchiata and Pleocyemata) having a slender elongated body, a compressed abdomen, and a long spiny rostrum and including some (especially family Penaeidae) that are commercially important as food; also : a small crustacean (as an amphipod or a branchiopod) resembling the true shrimps

2

: a very small or puny person or thing

— shrimp·like \-ˌlīk\ adjective

— shrimpy \ˈshrim-pē, ˈsrim-\ adjective

Examples of SHRIMP

1. He's a little shrimp of a boy.
2. <the boy was just a shrimp until his teens, when he had a growth spurt>

Origin of SHRIMP

Middle English shrimpe; akin to Middle Low German schrempen to contract, wrinkle, Old Norse skorpna to shrivel up

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to SHRIMP

Synonyms: diminutive, midget, mite, peewee, pygmy (also pigmy), runt, scrub, dwarf, Tom Thumb

Antonyms: behemoth, colossus, giant, jumbo, leviathan, mammoth, monster, titan

Related Words: nubbin; mini, miniature; bantam; homunculus, hop-o'-my-thumb, manikin (also mannikin); half-pint

Near Antonyms: whale, whopper

see all synonyms and antonyms

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Other Invertebrates (Except Insects) Terms

anemone, cephalopod, quahog