minke whale

noun

min·​ke whale ˈmiŋ-kə- 

variants or less commonly minke

: a small gray to black baleen whale (genus Balaenoptera) with a whitish underside and a relatively narrow, pointed snout:

a

: one (B. acutorostrata) chiefly of the northern hemisphere

called also common minke whale, northern minke whale

b

: one (B. bonaerensis) of the southern hemisphere that was formerly classified in the same species as the northern form

called also Antarctic minke, southern minke whale

see rorqual

Illustration of minke whale

Examples of minke whale in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

One of those deaths occurred after a rare minke whale found offshore near Emeryville was euthanized due to debilitating health issues. —Nadia Lopez, Axios, 1 May 2025

Tests confirmed high levels of the toxin in a humpback whale that stranded in Huntington Beach in January and in a minke whale that died in Long Beach Harbor in April. —Karen Kucher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 May 2025

Additional whale deaths in the area raise concern The minke whale's death comes after three dead gray whales turned up in San Francisco Bay in less than two weeks, Rulli said. —Terry Collins, USA Today, 9 Apr. 2025

The algae has killed sea lions, dolphins and now whales, including a humpback whale and a minke whale, McClatchy News reported. —Helena Wegner, Sacbee.com, 25 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

partial translation of Norwegian minkehval, from minke- (perhaps from Meincke, a crewman of Svend Foyn †1894 Norwegian whaler) + hval whale

First Known Use

1939, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for minke whale

• abigail
• cottontail
• countervail
• fingernail
• martingale
• mesoscale
• microscale
• monorail
• nanoscale
• ponytail
• swallowtail
• wensleydale