yellowtail

noun

yel·​low·​tail ˈye-lō-ˌtāl 

ˈye-lə-

plural yellowtail or yellowtails

: any of various fishes having a yellow or yellowish tail: such as

a

: any of several carangid fishes (genus Seriola)

especially : a food and sport fish (S. lalandi) of the Pacific and Indian oceans having a yellow stripe along each side of the body

b

: silver perch sense a

c

: a snapper (Ocyurus chrysurus) that is a sport and food fish found from Massachusetts to Brazil and is olive to bluish above with yellow spots and a broad yellow stripe along each side of the body

called also yellowtail snapper

Examples of yellowtail in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Here, a pontoon boat included in the sale makes for long, sunny days out on the water catching yellowtail kingfish, bream, and snapper—all local to the area. —Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 27 Aug. 2025

Others pair starters like yellowtail jalapeño or crispy Brussels sprouts with mains such as miso black cod or Cornish hen yakitori. —Keyla Vasconcellos, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025

Ahi, salmon and yellowtail lay atop a bowl of sticky rice with a large helping of cucumbers, seaweed and crab salads. —Miguel Otárola, Denver Post, 27 June 2025

The yuzu hamachi plate ($16) is spectacularly colorful, with bright pink yellowtail arranged in an orange-yellow yuzu-passionfruit sauce topped with fresh greens. —Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 30 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1622, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing yellowtail

• yellowtail flounder

Rhymes for yellowtail

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