killer whale
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killer whale
Where it comes from
Calque or mistranslation of Spanish asesina-ballenas (“whale killer”), referring to their tendency to hunt whales. Equivalent to killer + whale.
noun killer whales
- A sea mammal related to dolphins and porpoises (Orcinus orca). Of this whale, little is known to the Nantucketer, and nothing at all to the professed naturalist. From what I have seen of him at a distance, I should say that he was about the bigness of a grampus. He is very savage - a sort of Feegee fish. He sometimes takes the great Folio whales by the lip and
Translations
Every language
noun a sea mammal, ''Orcinus orca''
| 한국어 | 범고래 beomgorae |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | さかまた sakamata, 鯱 shachi |
| 中文 | 逆戟鯨 /逆戟鲸 nìjǐjīng, 虎鯨 /虎鲸 hǔjīng, 殺人鯨 /杀人鲸 shārénjīng |
| Português | baleia-assassina, orca |
| Français | épaulard, orque |
| Deutsch | Schwertwal, Killerwal, Mörderwal, Speckhauer, Butzkopf |
| Italiano | orca |
| Ελληνικά | όρκα órka |
| Русский | коса́тка kosátka, каса́тка kasátka, кит-уби́йца kit-ubíjca |
| Tiếng Việt | cá voi sát thủ |
| العربية | حُوت قَاتِل ḥūt qātil |
| עברית | לוויתן קטלן livyatan katlan |
Talk about this word "killer whale." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/killer%20whale. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. killer whale. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/killer%20whale "killer whale." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/killer%20whale.Cite this
@misc{killer_whale_2026,
title = {killer whale},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/killer%20whale},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
