porcupinefish

[ pawr-kyuh-pahyn-fish ]
/ ˈpɔr kyəˌpaɪnˌfɪʃ /

noun, plural (especially collectively) por·cu·pine·fish, (especially referring to two or more kinds or species) por·cu·pine·fish·es.

any of several fishes of the family Diodontidae, especially Diodon hystrix, of tropical seas, capable of inflating the body with water or air until it resembles a globe, with erection of the long spines covering the skin.

Origin of porcupinefish

First recorded in 1675–85; porcupine + fish

Words nearby porcupinefish

porcupine anteater, porcupine fish, porcupine grass, porcupine provisions, porcupine river, porcupinefish, pore, pore fungus, porencephalia, porencephalitis, porencephaly

British Dictionary definitions for porcupine fish

porcupine fish

noun

any of various plectognath fishes of the genus Diodon and related genera, of temperate and tropical seas, having a body that is covered with sharp spines and can be inflated into a globe: family Diodontidae Also called: globefish