SINCE 1828
great white shark
nounDefinition of great white shark
: a large mackerel shark (Carcharodon carcharias) of warm seas that is bluish when young but becomes whitish with age and has been known to attack humans
— called also white shark
— see shark illustrationExamples of great white shark in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
There were multiple shark sightings reported over the holiday weekend, including a great white shark dining on a whale carcass off Duxbury Beach. — Jeremy C. Fox, BostonGlobe.com, "Beach towns on Cape Cod brace for peak of shark season," 3 Sep. 2019 So far 2019 is following last year’s numbers, which included one shark attack death after Arthur Medici, 26, was killed by a great white shark off the coast of Cape Cod. — Colleen Cronin, PEOPLE.com, "Here's a Map of All the Shark Attacks in the U.S. This Year," 9 Aug. 2019 In the span of one week at the end of June, researchers spotted 12 great white sharks near the bay. — Scottie Andrew And Artemis Moshtaghian, CNN, "A great white shark jumped in front of a boat near Cape Cod, surprising those on board," 21 July 2019 In October 1997, tourists in a whale-watching boat off the Farallon Islands, near San Francisco, witnessed two killer whales attack a great white shark and consume its liver. — National Geographic, "Orcas eat great white sharks—new insights into rare behavior revealed," 16 July 2019 Whale That Ate Jaws: Eye Witness Report (Nat Geo at 10) A look back at the shocking 1997 incident where a killer whale attacked and ate a great white shark in the San Francisco Bay. — Savannah Stephens, Washington Post, "Tonight’s Best TV: ‘Behind Closed Doors’ debuts on HBO, etc.," 16 July 2019 Salvador Jorgensen has spent more than 15 years studying great white sharks near California's coast. — Jason G. Goldman, Scientific American, "Orcas May Turn Great White Sharks into Scaredy Cats," 8 July 2019 Believed to be the largest great white shark in the world, Deep Blue, measures almost 21 feet long and over 2 and a half tons. — Dan Snierson, EW.com, "Shark Week 2019 schedule: Your guide to all 18 specials," 10 July 2019 Earlier this week, a great white shark was spotted off the coast of the Jersey Shore. — Chris Hopkins | Chopkins@pennlive.com, nola.com, "See how close a shark got to unaware Myrtle Beach swimmers," 19 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'great white shark.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on great white shark
What made you want to look up great white shark? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
Musical Words Quiz
-
- Which word describes a musical performance marked by the absence of instrumental accompaniment?
Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Words at Play
Share great white shark
Resources for great white shark