Whitebait

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Whitebait \White"bait`\, n. (Zool.)
     (a) The young of several species of herrings, especially of
         the common herring, esteemed a great delicacy by epicures
         in England.
     (b) A small translucent fish ({Salanx Chinensis}) abundant at
         certain seasons on the coasts of China and Japan, and


         used in the same manner as the European whitebait.
         [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  whitebait
       n 1: minnows or other small fresh- or salt-water fish (especially
            herring); usually cooked whole
       2: the edible young of especially herrings and sprats and
          smelts