fish

noun

UK /fɪʃ/

Word Forms

singular	fish
plural	fish or fishes

1
countable an animal that lives in water and swims. It breathes by using its gills and moves by using its tail and fins. Saltwater fish live in the sea and freshwater fish live in rivers and lakes
Little silver fish swam past.
Did you catch any fish?
Kenny keeps tropical fish.
Synonyms and related words
Types of fish
bottom feeder
fish
flatfish
2
uncountable fish eaten as food. Fish and other sea animals such as shrimps are called seafood.
Synonyms and related words
Fish eaten as food
bass
bloater
bouillabaisse

phrases

a big fish in a small pond

a cold fish

drink like a fish

a fish out of water

have bigger/other fish to fry

neither fish nor fowl

there are plenty more fish in the sea

fish

noun

US /fɪʃ/

Word Forms

singular	fish
plural	fish or fishes

1
countable an animal that lives in water and swims. It breathes by using its gills and moves by using its tail and fins. Saltwater fish live in the ocean and freshwater fish live in rivers and lakes
Little silver fish swam past.
Did you catch any fish?
Kenny keeps tropical fish.
Synonyms and related words
Types of fish
bottom feeder
fish
flatfish
2
uncountable fish eaten as food. Fish and other sea animals such as shrimps are called seafood.
Synonyms and related words
Fish eaten as food
bass
bloater
bouillabaisse
3
countable Americaninformalsomeone who is easy to cheat
Synonyms and related words
People who are tricked or easy to trick
dupe
sitting duck
sitting target

phrases

a big fish in a small pond

a cold fish

drink like a fish

a fish out of water

have bigger/other fish to fry

neither fish nor fowl

there are plenty more fish in the sea

fish

verb

UK /fɪʃ/

Word Forms

present tense
I/you/we/they	fish
he/she/it	fishes
present participle	fishing
past tense	fished
past participle	fished

1
intransitive to try to catch fish, for example using a net or a fishing rod
The ship was not permitted to fish in Canadian waters.
fish for:
The boys were fishing for trout.
go fishing:
Les goes fishing almost every weekend.
Synonyms and related words
General words for hunting, shooting and fishing
an easy target
angling
bag
1. 1a
  transitive to catch fish in a particular area of water
  Many boats fish these waters.
  Synonyms and related words
  General words for hunting, shooting and fishing
  an easy target
  angling
  bag
2
intransitive to try to find something by feeling inside a bag, a box etc
fish for:
She stopped and fished for her door key.
fish around:
Matthew started fishing around in a pile of papers.
Synonyms and related words
To search for something or someone
go through
look out for
seek out
3
intransitive to try to make someone tell you something, without asking them directly
Stephen was fishing, but I didn’t tell him anything.
fish for:
‘Having trouble?’ he asked casually, fishing for information.
fish for compliments:
When I said I was overweight, I wasn’t fishing for compliments.
Synonyms and related words
To persuade someone to tell you something
squeeze out
force out of
drag out of
4
to fish in troubled waters
to win an advantage from someone’s difficult situation
The powers are distributed differently between government bodies in different places and as a result there are ample opportunities for fishing in troubled waters.
Submitted by:
Prakash Chandra Patel from India on 19/10/2015
Open Dictionary - October2015

phrasal verbs

fish out

fish

verb

US /fɪʃ/

Word Forms

present tense
I/you/we/they	fish
he/she/it	fishes
present participle	fishing
past tense	fished
past participle	fished

1
intransitive to try to catch fish, for example using a net or a fishing rod
The ship was not permitted to fish in Canadian waters.
fish for:
The boys were fishing for trout.
go fishing:
Les goes fishing almost every weekend.
Synonyms and related words
General words for hunting, shooting and fishing
an easy target
angling
bag
1. 1a
  transitive to catch fish in a particular area of water
  Many boats fish these waters.
  Synonyms and related words
  General words for hunting, shooting and fishing
  an easy target
  angling
  bag
2
intransitive to try to find something by feeling inside a bag, a box, etc.
fish for:
She stopped and fished for her door key.
fish around:
Matthew started fishing around in a pile of papers.
Synonyms and related words
To search for something or someone
go through
look out for
seek out
3
intransitive to try to make someone tell you something, without asking them directly
fish for:
“Having trouble?” he asked casually, fishing for information.
fish for compliments:
When I said I was overweight, I wasn’t fishing for compliments.
Synonyms and related words
To persuade someone to tell you something
squeeze out
force out of
drag out of
4
to fish in troubled waters
to win an advantage from someone’s difficult situation
The powers are distributed differently between government bodies in different places and as a result there are ample opportunities for fishing in troubled waters.
Submitted by:
Prakash Chandra Patel from India on 19/10/2015
Open Dictionary - October2015

phrases

fish or cut bait

phrasal verbs

fish out

fish ​‌‌‌

fish ​‌‌‌

fish ​‌‌

to fish in troubled waters

fish ​‌‌

to fish in troubled waters

fish

fish

fish

fish