whalebone whale

/ˌweɪlˈboʊn weɪl/

/ˌhweɪlˈboʊn hweɪl/

Other forms: whalebone whales

Definitions of whalebone whale

1. noun

   whale with plates of whalebone along the upper jaw for filtering plankton from the water
   synonyms: baleen whale

   types:

   right whale

   large Arctic whalebone whale; allegedly the `right' whale to hunt because of its valuable whalebone and oil

   Balaena mysticetus, Greenland whale, bowhead, bowhead whale

   large-mouthed Arctic whale

   razorback, rorqual

   any of several baleen whales of the family Balaenopteridae having longitudinal grooves on the throat and a small pointed dorsal fin

   Balaenoptera musculus, blue whale, sulfur bottom

   largest mammal ever known; bluish-grey migratory whalebone whale mostly of southern hemisphere

   Megaptera novaeangliae, humpback, humpback whale

   large whalebone whale with long flippers noted for arching or humping its back as it dives

   Eschrichtius gibbosus, Eschrichtius robustus, devilfish, gray whale, grey whale

   medium-sized greyish-black whale of the northern Pacific

   Balaenoptera physalus, common rorqual, fin whale, finback, finback whale

   large flat-headed whalebone whale having deep furrows along the throat; of Atlantic and Pacific

   Balaenoptera borealis, sei whale

   similar to but smaller than the finback whale

   Balaenoptera acutorostrata, lesser rorqual, minke whale, piked whale

   small finback of coastal waters of Atlantic and Pacific

   type of:

   whale

   any of the larger cetacean mammals having a streamlined body and breathing through a blowhole on the head