eel

Meaning

Noun

1. Any freshwater fish of the order Anguilliformes, which are elongated and resemble snakes.
2. A European eel (Anguilla anguilla).
3. Someone or something that is sneaky and/or hard to catch.

Verb

1. To fish for eels.
2. To move with a sinuous motion like that of an eel.

Synonyms

freshwater eel

lamprey

conger eel

European eel

rascal

roughneck

streamer

large dance piece

anguilla

intestinal worm

giant moray eel

European conger

seismic cable

common eel

vagabond

grig

moray eel

python

Pronounced as (IPA)

/iːl/

Etymology

From Middle English el, from Old English ǣl (“eel”), from Proto-West Germanic *āl, from Proto-Germanic *ēlaz (“eel”), which is of unknown origin.
Cognates:
Cognate with West Frisian iel (“eel”), Dutch aal (“eel”), German Low German Aal, Ool (“eel”), German Aal (“eel”), Swedish, Danish and Norwegian ål (“eel”).