whitebait

W4H4I1T1E1B3A1I1T1

noun

The young of various species of fish, especially herrings, sprats or smelts

UncommonScrabble 17
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Meanings

nounwhitebait (countable and uncountable, plural whitebaits or whitebait)

plural whitebaits

  1. countableuncountableThe young of various species of fish, especially herrings, sprats or smelts
  2. countableuncountableFood prepared from such fish, often deep fried and served as a starter or snack.
verbwhitebait (third-person singular simple present whitebaits, present participle whitebaiting, simple past and past participle whitebaited)

present singular third person whitebaits · participle present whitebaiting · participle past whitebaited · past whitebaited

  1. intransitiveTo fish for whitebait.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
european spratjollytail

Origin

From white + bait.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French blanchaille, petite friture
  • blanchailleyoung of various species of fish
  • petite fritureyoung of various species of fish
Japanese 白子
  • 白子young of various species of fish
Māori īnanga
  • īnangayoung of various species of fish
Polish małe rybki
  • małe rybkiyoung of various species of fish
Cite this entry
APA

whitebait. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/whitebait

MLA

“whitebait.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/whitebait. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “whitebait,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/whitebait.

Source: whitebait on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.