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king crab

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king crab

–noun
1. horseshoe crab.
2. Also called Alaskan king crab, Alaska crab. a large, edible crab, Paralithodes camtschatica, of cold North Pacific waters, esp. abundant along the coasts of Alaska and Japan.

Origin:
1690–1700

horseshoe crab

–noun
a large marine arthropod, Limulus polyphemus, of shallow coastal waters of eastern North America and eastern Asia, having both compound and simple eyes, book gills, a stiff tail, and a brown carapace curved like a horseshoe: a living fossil related to the woodlouse.
Also called king crab.


Origin:
1765–75
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To king crab
horseshoe crab  
n.  Any of various marine arthropods of the class Merostomata, especially Limulus polyphemus or Xiphosura polyphemus of eastern North America, having a large rounded body and a stiff pointed tail. Also called king crab, limulus.
king crab  
n.  
  1. A large crab (Paralithodes camtschatica) inhabiting the coastal waters of Alaska, Japan, and Siberia and valued commercially for its edible flesh. Also called Alaskan king crab.

  2. See horseshoe crab.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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