sea lamprey

noun

: a large anadromous lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) that has a mottled upper surface, is an ectoparasite of fish, and is sometimes used as food

Examples of sea lamprey in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Beginning in 1968, its work has also included the control of sea lampreys in the Great Lakes, bringing Wisconsin's major water bodies together. Madeline Heim, jsonline.com, 8 Dec. 2025 Porter, a seasonal employee with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, was on the Upper Peninsula with a team of other federal workers and colleagues from Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans to do one thing: kill invasive sea lampreys. Katie Thornton, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2025 The Erie Canal and its adjacent feeder rivers and reservoirs likely enabled two voracious nonnative species, the Atlantic sea lamprey and alewife, to enter the Great Lakes ecosystem. Christine Keiner, The Conversation, 15 Oct. 2025 The same year, officials announced the Lake Superior Trout population as finally rehabilitated after collapse by the 1950s due to invasive sea lamprey and commercial fishing, the DNR stated. Darcie Moran, Freep.com, 15 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for sea lamprey

Word History

First Known Use

1879, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sea lamprey was in 1879

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Cite this Entry

“Sea lamprey.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sea%20lamprey. Accessed 22 Dec. 2025.

Kids Definition

sea lamprey

noun
: a lamprey of the Atlantic coast that is also found in the Great Lakes and that attaches to and feeds on other fishes with its round sucking mouth

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