cuttlefish

noun

cut·tle·fish | \ ˈkə-tᵊl-ˌfish

How to pronounce cuttlefish (audio)

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Definition of cuttlefish

: any of various marine cephalopod mollusks (order Sepioidea, especially genus Sepia) having eight short arms and two usually longer tentacles and differing from the related squid in having a calcified internal shell

Examples of cuttlefish in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Our lineage split from that of cephalopods—the spineless class that includes octopuses, squids and cuttlefish—half a billion years ago. — Rachel Nuwer, Scientific American, "An Octopus Could Be the Next Model Organism," 24 Feb. 2021 The master of disruptive coloration may be the cuttlefish, which can change the color and pattern of its skin. — Mary Bates, Animals, "Which optical illusions can animals see?," 24 Nov. 2020 Research looking at when cuttlefish produce these markings has shown the importance of visual markers such as object area, contrast, and edges. — Mary Bates, Animals, "Which optical illusions can animals see?," 24 Nov. 2020 After months of not being able to visit due to the pandemic, Margeaux marveled at old friends — like the cownose rays — and met new ones, like the cuttlefish that arrived in August and the aquarium’s first blacktip sharks, born last year. — Dallas News, "A 10-year-old’s letter turns into exclusive visit at the Children’s Aquarium at Fair Park," 20 Nov. 2020 However, the process of smelling or tasting is much less clear in cephalopods --a group of mollusks that includes octopuses, squids and cuttlefish -- living in the ocean. — Ryan Prior, CNN, "How octopuses taste their meals by touching them, according to a new study," 29 Oct. 2020 But last year, René Hoffmann, a paleontologist at Ruhr-Universität Bochum in Germany, stumbled across the image, depicting what appeared to be a Plesioteuthis subovata cephalopod, a predecessor of today’s squids, octopuses and cuttlefish. — Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian Magazine, "Pterosaur Tooth Found in Rare Ancient Squid Fossil," 4 Feb. 2020 Though a far cry from a human, big-brained cuttlefish are good candidates for stereo vision. — Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian Magazine, "Scientists Velcroed 3-D Glasses to Cuttlefish to Study Their Depth Perception," 8 Jan. 2020 But not all is equal in the eyes of cuttlefish and human. — Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian Magazine, "Scientists Velcroed 3-D Glasses to Cuttlefish to Study Their Depth Perception," 8 Jan. 2020

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

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Last Updated

1 Mar 2021

Cite this Entry

“Cuttlefish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cuttlefish. Accessed 8 Mar. 2021.

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More Definitions for cuttlefish

cuttlefish

noun

cut·tle·fish | \ ˈkə-tᵊl-ˌfish

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Kids Definition of cuttlefish

: a sea animal with ten arms that is related to the squid and octopus

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