right whale

noun

any of several large whalebone whales of the genus Balaena, of circumpolar seas: the species B. glacialis is greatly reduced in numbers.

right whale

noun

See bowhead
any large whalebone whale of the family Balaenidae. They are grey or black, have a large head, and, in most, no dorsal fin, and are hunted as a source of whalebone and oil See also bowhead

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Word History and Origins

First recorded in 1715–25; allegedly so called because it was the “right” whale to hunt, alluding to its relative buoyancy when killed, proximity to land, the value of its blubber, etc.

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Word History and Origins

Origin of right whale¹

C19: perhaps so named because it was right for hunting

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Example Sentences

The largest of the Cetacea is the Right whale, of which—so persistently is it hunted down—there will soon be but few Left.

From Project Gutenberg

The Right whale, though many people make Light of it, is unquestionably the heaviest of living creatures.

From Project Gutenberg

The right whale has an immense tongue, and lives by suction, the food being a kind of small shrimp.

From Project Gutenberg

Two of these, the bowhead or Greenland whale, and its more widely distributed close relative the right whale, are baleen whales.

From Project Gutenberg

Black right whale, Biscayan right whale, Biscay whale, Nordcaper right whale.

From Project Gutenberg

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