cartilaginous fish

noun

Definition of cartilaginous fish

: any of a class (Chondrichthyes) of fishes (such as a shark, ray, or chimaera) having the skeleton wholly or largely composed of cartilage — compare bony fish, jawless fish

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Scientists have long struggled to explain why bony fishes are so small: The heaviest—the ocean sunfish—is just 2.3 metric tons, but cartilaginous fishes like whale sharks can weigh up to 34 metric tons. — Colin Barras, Science | AAAS, "This ancient fish was bigger than a whale shark—and faster than scientists ever imagined," 29 May 2018 What does a mouse have in common with a cartilaginous fish known as a little skate? — Lorraine Boissoneault, Smithsonian, "What a Walking Fish Can Teach Us About Human Evolution," 9 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'cartilaginous fish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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The first known use of cartilaginous fish was in 1769

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