baitfish
noun
bait·fish
ˈbāt-ˌfish 
: a small fish (such as a golden shiner or menhaden) that attracts and is a food source for a larger game fish
also
: a fish used for bait
Examples of baitfish in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
How to Fish for Crappie When a Front Is Coming
Before a storm, crappie school up to bird-dog wandering baitfish.
—
Don Wirth, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
In lakes that are clear, such as the Great Lakes and natural oligotrophic lakes of the north, baits that emulate the natural color of the baitfish in the system should be tried first.
—David A. Rose, Field & Stream, 20 Mar. 2024
In white or silver a grub can represent a baitfish when reeled quickly through the middle of the water column.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 7 Mar. 2024
This means that come early spring, cats waking from the cold have lots of dead baitfish on the bottom to eat.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 14 Mar. 2024
For baitfish, there has been goggle eye jacks and ballyhoo around the pier.
—Alan Sherman, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
As Lauri Rapala first recognized, predators single out injured baitfish and zero in for the kill.
—Jordan Rodriguez, Idaho Statesman, 31 Jan. 2024
Minnows, however, is that a bag of them costs significantly more than similar unscented soft-plastic baitfish.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 4 Jan. 2024
Chartreuse over white, olive over white, and blue over white are just a few staples when trying to match baitfish species.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 17 Jan. 2024
Don Wirth, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
In lakes that are clear, such as the Great Lakes and natural oligotrophic lakes of the north, baits that emulate the natural color of the baitfish in the system should be tried first.
—David A. Rose, Field & Stream, 20 Mar. 2024
In white or silver a grub can represent a baitfish when reeled quickly through the middle of the water column.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 7 Mar. 2024
This means that come early spring, cats waking from the cold have lots of dead baitfish on the bottom to eat.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 14 Mar. 2024
For baitfish, there has been goggle eye jacks and ballyhoo around the pier.
—Alan Sherman, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
As Lauri Rapala first recognized, predators single out injured baitfish and zero in for the kill.
—Jordan Rodriguez, Idaho Statesman, 31 Jan. 2024
Minnows, however, is that a bag of them costs significantly more than similar unscented soft-plastic baitfish.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 4 Jan. 2024
Chartreuse over white, olive over white, and blue over white are just a few staples when trying to match baitfish species.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 17 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'baitfish.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Baitfish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/baitfish. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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