Tigerfish

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A predatory freshwater fish native to African rivers, known for its striped body and sharp, prominent teeth
2. An African river fish with a striped, silvery body and a fearsome set of pointed teeth used to hunt other fish
3. Any of several toothy, predatory freshwater species found in African waterways, often marked with bold stripes along the flanks

Etymology: Tigerfish is a compound of "tiger" and "fish," so its history is plain: it names a fish that is fierce and striped, or simply a predator with a tiger's reputation. The word is built entirely from two English words, and no borrowing from another language is involved. The "tiger" half comes from Old French "tigre," which passed into English from Latin "tigris" and Greek "tigris," a loanword from an Iranian source meaning "arrow" or "swift," likely a reference to the animal's speed. The "fish" half is an Old English word, "fisc," that has survived essentially unchanged in meaning for over a thousand years. Combining a big-cat name with a common noun for a water animal produced a term that signals fierceness in a fish.