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thresher shark

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Definition of thresher shark

: a large nearly cosmopolitan shark (Alopias vulpinus) that has a greatly elongated curved upper lobe of the tail which is often used to thresh the water to round up the schooling fish on which it feeds — see shark illustration

Examples of thresher shark in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Oregon's Department of Fish & Wildlife lists the salmon shark, spiny dogfish, soupfin shark, common thresher shark, basking shark, blue shark as native to its coastal waters, among others. — Julia Musto, Fox News, 26 Aug. 2021 The funds will finalize implementation of state legislation passed in 2018 aimed at phasing out the use of drift gill nets, which fishing boats pull behind them to capture swordfish, opa and thresher shark. — Tara Duggan, San Francisco Chronicle, 3 July 2021 In the latest example, an adult 15-foot thresher shark — itself equipped with a whiplike tail capable of stunning blows — washed up in Libya. — Joshua Sokol, New York Times, 27 Oct. 2020 The case of this dead thresher shark piqued the scientists' interest because an adult swordfish inflicted the wound. — Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Oct. 2020 But state shark expert Greg Skomal said the thresher sharks like the four that have been found dead in Wellfleet and Orleans in recent days probably aren’t literally freezing to death. — Dialynn Dwyer, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Jan. 2018 The conservancy said a fourth thresher shark was found in an ice pack off Wellfleet on New Year’s Eve. — Dialynn Dwyer, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Jan. 2018 June Mako Mania: Mako shark tournament for bluefish and thresher sharks. — baltimoresun.com, 11 May 2018 The California driftnet fishery targets swordfish and common thresher shark. — Sarah Gibbens, National Geographic, 27 Apr. 2018 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'thresher shark.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of thresher shark

1888, in the meaning defined above

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The first known use of thresher shark was in 1888

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Dictionary Entries Near thresher shark

thresherman

thresher shark

thresher whale

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Cite this Entry

“Thresher shark.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thresher%20shark. Accessed 26 Jun. 2022.

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Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about thresher shark

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