sperm whale

noun

: a very large toothed whale (Physeter macrocephalus synonym P. catodon) that has large conical teeth in the lower jaw, a single blowhole, and a massive squarish head with a closed cavity containing a fluid mixture of spermaceti and oil, and that may reach a length in the male of nearly 60 feet (18.3 meters)

Illustration of sperm whale

Illustration of sperm whale

Examples of sperm whale in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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When an emaciated dwarf sperm whale calf washed ashore on a Florida beach last month, officials brought the distressed mammal to veterinarians for further examination. Leah Sarnoff, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2024 Off the coast of the Caribbean island of Dominica, sperm whales are making a big splash. Maggie Shipstead, Travel + Leisure, 18 Sep. 2024 Contextual and combinatorial structure in sperm whale vocalisations Cody Cottier is a contributing writer at Discover who loves exploring big questions about the universe and our home planet, the nature of consciousness, the ethical implications of science and more. Cody Cottier, Discover Magazine, 26 Sep. 2024 The jawbone of a nearly 50-foot sperm whale that washed ashore on Oreti Beach in New Zealand's southernmost region has been removed with a chainsaw and stolen, according to New Zealand's Department of Conservation. Clare Marie Schneider, NPR, 19 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for sperm whale 

Word History

Etymology

short for spermaceti whale

First Known Use

circa 1700, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sperm whale was circa 1700

Dictionary Entries Near sperm whale

Cite this Entry

“Sperm whale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sperm%20whale. Accessed 5 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

sperm whale

noun
: a large toothed whale with a large chamber in the skull that contains a fluid mixture of spermaceti and oil

More from Merriam-Webster on sperm whale

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