Meanings
nounvampire squid (plural vampire squids or vampire squid)
plural vampire squids
- Any of the order Vampyromorphida of cephalopods with eight arms which are united by a web of skin.
- A small cephalopod (Vampyroteuthis infernalis), found throughout temperate and tropical oceans in extreme deep sea conditions.
The Vampire squid – which is actually an octopodiform and not a squid, and looks like an apparition from an impossibly ancient dream – is harmless to humans.
2012, Caspar Henderson, The Book of Barely Imagined Beings, Granta Books, published 2013, page 229
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 吸血烏賊 /吸血乌贼
- 吸血烏賊 /吸血乌贼 (xīxuè wūzéi)sea animal
French vampire des enfers
- vampire des enferssea animal
Japanese 蝙蝠蛸
- 蝙蝠蛸 (kōmoridako)sea animal
Polish wampirzyca
- wampirzycasea animal
Portuguese lula-vampira-do-inferno
- lula-vampira-do-infernosea animal
Russian а́дский вампи́р, адский кальма́р-вампи́р
- а́дский вампи́р (ádskij vampír)sea animal
- адский кальма́р-вампи́р (adskij kalʹmár-vampír)sea animal
Swedish vampyrbläckfisk
- vampyrbläckfisksea animal
Cite this entry
APA
vampire squid. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vampire%20squid
MLA
“vampire squid.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vampire%20squid. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “vampire squid,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vampire%20squid.
Source: vampire squid on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.