- shotten herring
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1) recently spawned herring2) worthless or spiritless persons
Dictionary of ichthyology. 2009.
shotten herring
Look at other dictionaries:
shotten herring — n. 1 a herring that has spawned. 2 archaic a weakened or dispirited person. Etymology: ME, archaic past part. of SHOOT … Useful english dictionary
Shotten — Shot ten, n. [Properly p. p. of shoot; AS. scoten, sceoten, p. p. of sce[ o]tan.] 1. Having ejected the spawn; as, a shotten herring. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. Shot out of its socket; dislocated, as a bone. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
dead as a shotten herring — an expression based on the perception that a spawned out herring dies quickly (obsolete) … Dictionary of ichthyology
shotten — ˈshätən adjective Etymology: Middle English shotyn, from shoten, shotyn (past participle of sheten, shoten, shuten to shoot), from Old English gescoten 1. a. : having ejected the spawn and so of inferior food value full or shotten herrings … Useful english dictionary
shotten — adjective Etymology: Middle English shotyn, from past participle of sheten to shoot Date: 15th century having ejected the spawn and so of inferior food value < shotten herring > … New Collegiate Dictionary
shotten — recently spawned and thus less desirable as food, e.g. especially said of herring … Dictionary of ichthyology
shotten — /shot n/, adj. 1. (of fish, esp. herring) having recently ejected the spawn. 2. Obs. (of a bone) dislocated. [1175 1225; ME, ptp. of SHOOT] * * * … Universalium
shotten — [ ʃɒt(ə)n] adjective (of a herring) having spawned. Origin ME: archaic past participle of shoot … English new terms dictionary
shotten — shot•ten [[t]ˈʃɒt n[/t]] adj. ich (of fish, esp. herring) having recently ejected the spawn • Etymology: 1175–1225; ME, ptp. of shoot … From formal English to slang
shotten — /ˈʃɒtn/ (say shotn) adjective 1. (of fish, especially herring) that has recently spawned. 2. Pathology dislocated. {old past participle of shoot} …
