barnacle
1
[ bahr-nuh-kuh l ]
/ ˈbɑr nə kəl /
noun
any marine crustacean of the subclass Cirripedia, usually having a calcareous shell, being either stalked (goose barnacle) and attaching itself to ship bottoms and floating timber, or stalkless (rock barnacle or acorn barnacle) and attaching itself to rocks, especially in the intertidal zone.
a person or thing that clings tenaciously.
Origin of barnacle
1
1580–85; perhaps a conflation of
barnacle
barnacle goose with Cornish
brennyk, Irish
báirneach limpet, Welsh
brenig limpets, reflecting the folk belief that such geese, whose breeding grounds were unknown, were engendered from rotten ships' planking
OTHER WORDS FROM barnacle
bar·na·cled, adjectiveWords nearby barnacle
barn raising,
barn swallow,
barn-door skate,
barnabas,
barnaby,
barnacle,
barnacle goose,
barnard,
barnard's star,
barnardo,
barnaul
Definition for barnacle (2 of 2)
barnacle
2
[ bahr-nuh-kuh l ]
/ ˈbɑr nə kəl /
noun
Usually barnacles.
an instrument with two hinged branches for pinching the nose of an unruly horse.
barnacles, British Dialect.
spectacles(def 3).
Origin of barnacle
2
1350–1400; Middle English
bernacle bit, diminutive of
bernac < Old French < ?
Example sentences from the Web for barnacle
British Dictionary definitions for barnacle
barnacle
/ (ˈbɑːnəkəl) /
noun
any of various marine crustaceans of the subclass Cirripedia that, as adults, live attached to rocks, ship bottoms, etc. They have feathery food-catching cirri protruding from a hard shell
See acorn barnacle, goose barnacle
a person or thing that is difficult to get rid of
Derived forms of barnacle
barnacled, adjectiveWord Origin for barnacle
C16: related to Late Latin
bernicla, of obscure origin
Scientific definitions for barnacle
barnacle
[ bär′nə-kəl ]
Any of various small marine crustaceans of the subclass Cirripedia that form a hard shell in the adult stage and attach themselves to underwater surfaces, such as rocks, the bottoms of ships, and the skin of whales.