mathemegn.
/ˈmaθᵻmɛɡ/, U.S. /ˈmæθəˌmɛɡ/ U.S. Now historical.
A freshwater catfish of the genus Ictalurus, found in North American lakes.
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the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > order Siluriformes (catfish) > [noun] > member of family Pimelodidae (common cat-fish)
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1777 in E. E. Rich Cumberland & Hudson House Jrnls. (1951) I. 139 We have killed since the Lake being froze over 396 Sturgeon..5 Methy, or Burbot and one Ma'the'meg a Fish much resembling a Cod in make and Taste.
1784 T. Pennant Arctic Zool. I. p. cxci The Mathemeg..a fish abundant in the northerly lakes.
1820 J. Franklin Journey (1823) 93 One of the largest fish is the mathemegh, catfish, or barbue.
1836 J. Richardson Fauna Boreali-Americana III. 135 The mathemeg or land cod of the residents of the fur countries is taken sparingly.
1926 C. L. Hubbs Check-list Fishes Great Lakes 50 Vilarius lacustris... Northern catfish; mathemeg... Many [species of Vilarius] are becoming rare, if not facing extinction.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2001; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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