a predatory deep-sea fish of the family Chauliodontiae, with long, sharp, needle-shaped teeth
viperfish in American English
(ˈvaipərˌfɪʃ)
nounWord forms: pluralesp collectively -fish or esp referring to two or more kinds or species -fishes
any of several deep-sea fishes of the family Chauliodontidae, having a large mouth and fanglike teeth, some species having light-emitting organs on their bodies
Word origin
[1890–95; viper + fish]This word is first recorded in the period 1890–95. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: bootstrap, masochism, neoclassicism, phoneme, pogey