eel

[eel] /il/

noun, plural (especially collectively) eel (especially referring to two or more kinds or species) eels.

any of numerous elongated, snakelike marine or freshwater fishes of the order Apodes, having no ventral fins.

any of several similar but unrelated fishes, as the lamprey.

Origin

before 1000; Middle English ele, Old English ēl, ǣl; cognate with Dutch aal, German Aal, Old Norse āll

Related forms

eellike, adjective

eely, adjective

British Dictionary definitions for eel

eel

/iːl/

noun

any teleost fish of the order Apodes (or Anguilliformes), such as the European freshwater species Anguilla anguilla, having a long snakelike body, a smooth slimy skin, and reduced fins

any of various other animals with a long body and smooth skin, such as the mud eel and the electric eel

an evasive or untrustworthy person

Derived Forms

eel-like, adjective
eely, adjective

Word Origin

Old English ǣl; related to Old Frisian ēl, Old Norse āll, Old High German āl

Word Origin and History for eel

Old English æl, from Proto-Germanic *ælaz (cf. Old Frisian -el, Middle Dutch ael, Dutch aal, Old Saxon and Old High German al, German Aal, Old Norse all), of unknown origin, with no certain cognates outside Germanic. Used figuratively for slipperiness from at least 1520s.

Slang definitions & phrases for eel

eel

Related Terms

manhattan eel

Idioms and Phrases with eel

eel

see: slippery as an eel