chum salmon

noun

variants or less commonly chum

: a metallic bluish green salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) of the northern Pacific Ocean and Arctic Ocean that may reach a length of about 3.5 feet (1 meter) but is typically smaller

Note: Upon entering fresh water to spawn, the male chum salmon develops large, sharp teeth and becomes dark green to brown with reddish-purple vertical stripes.

Examples of chum salmon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The research team found about 100 chum salmon that were spawning or had just finished spawning in the Anaktuvuk and Itkillik rivers of the North Slope, Alaska’s northernmost borough. —Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Oct. 2023

That bycatch includes king and chum salmon, crab, halibut, and other species. —Outdoor Life, 28 Sep. 2023

Meanwhile, king and chum salmon runs in Western Alaska have collapsed in recent years. —Outdoor Life, 28 Sep. 2023

Last year brought record catches of red salmon in Bristol Bay, but in the last few years along the 2,000-mile Yukon River, there are no longer enough kings or chum salmon to provide for Indigenous people who have fished them for thousands of seasons. —Julia O’Malley, New York Times, 19 July 2023

Trawlers are allowed to catch an unlimited number of chum salmon. —Outdoor Life, 28 Sep. 2023

People harvested chum salmon instead, but then chum numbers began to drop in 2018. —Julia O’Malley, New York Times, 19 July 2023

One key question is how Jones’ decision will affect trollers’ harvests of coho and chum salmon, which make up the rest of their catch. —Max Graham and Nathaniel Herz, Anchorage Daily News, 3 May 2023

Historically, the chum salmon would navigate upriver during the high water events and then spawn after the waters had receded. —Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY, 18 Mar. 2023

Word History

Etymology

chum entry 5

First Known Use

1907, in the meaning defined above