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

There are about 900 minke whales off the coasts of Oregon, Washington and California. —Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2025

This includes pods of Gray, humpback, and minke whales as well as porpoises. —Jd Shadel, Condé Nast Traveler, 14 Mar. 2023

Marjorie Cox / The Marine Mammal Center So far this year 14 gray whales and a minke whale have died in the greater San Francisco Bay Area, the academy said, and the deaths of three of them were found to be from boat strikes. —Phil Helsel, NBC news, 30 May 2025

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

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