oyster
noun
oys·ter ˈȯi-stər 
often attributive
1
a
: any of various marine bivalve mollusks (family Ostreidae) that have a rough irregular shell closed by a single adductor muscle and include commercially important shellfish
b
: any of various mollusks resembling or related to the oysters
2
: something that is or can be readily made to serve one's personal ends
the world was her oyster
3
: a small mass of muscle contained in a concavity of the pelvic bone on each side of the back of a fowl
4
: an extremely taciturn person
5
: a grayish-white color
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Soon residents will set their sights on a bull and oyster roast and a golf tournament designed to raise funds for scholarships that are given each year. 
Melissa Whatley, Baltimore Sun, 30 Aug. 2022 Actor and comedian Rob Riggle just discovered what a Rocky Mountain oyster is. Keith Langston, EW.com, 22 Aug. 2022 There’s really nothing quite like an oyster happy hour. Aly Walansky, Forbes, 2 Aug. 2022 Sandwiches include a lobster roll and an oyster po’ boy. Lauren Daley, BostonGlobe.com, 12 June 2022 In Maine the oyster-growing season lasts only five months, from April to October. Ellen Ruppel Shell, Scientific American, 1 May 2022 Ocean Blue, a restaurant and oyster bar in Utica, New York, which is fully cashless, only receives a few crypto transactions a month. NBC News, 11 Apr. 2022 The safest way to consume an oyster, Farr concluded, is simply to cook it, killing any existing bacteria. Staff And Wire Reports, USA TODAY, 19 Aug. 2022 The death is the second in the state this month traced to the bacteria, Vibrio, found in an oyster. Sun Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2022 See More
Melissa Whatley, Baltimore Sun, 30 Aug. 2022 Actor and comedian Rob Riggle just discovered what a Rocky Mountain oyster is. Keith Langston, EW.com, 22 Aug. 2022 There’s really nothing quite like an oyster happy hour. Aly Walansky, Forbes, 2 Aug. 2022 Sandwiches include a lobster roll and an oyster po’ boy. Lauren Daley, BostonGlobe.com, 12 June 2022 In Maine the oyster-growing season lasts only five months, from April to October. Ellen Ruppel Shell, Scientific American, 1 May 2022 Ocean Blue, a restaurant and oyster bar in Utica, New York, which is fully cashless, only receives a few crypto transactions a month. NBC News, 11 Apr. 2022 The safest way to consume an oyster, Farr concluded, is simply to cook it, killing any existing bacteria. Staff And Wire Reports, USA TODAY, 19 Aug. 2022 The death is the second in the state this month traced to the bacteria, Vibrio, found in an oyster. Sun Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English oistre, borrowed from Anglo-French oistre, ostre, going back to Latin ostrea, ostreum "bivalve mollusk, oyster," borrowed from Greek óstreion, óstreon, of uncertain origin
Note: Greek óstreion has traditionally been taken to be a derivative, with a suffix -ei-, of a stem going back to Indo-European *h3esth1-r-, from the base *h3esth1- "bone." See note at ostracon.
First Known Use
13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Phrases Containing oyster
Kids Definition
oyster
noun
oys·ter ˈȯi-stər
: a shellfish that lives on stony bottoms ( oyster beds ) in shallow seawater, has a rough grayish shell made up of two hinged parts, and is often used for food