English Explanatory Dictionary

tilapia

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. Any of various edible fish, formerly species of the genus Tilapia, but now placed in other cichlid genera (such as Oreochromis), native to Africa and the Middle East but cultivated worldwide.
  2. A fishy (resembling a cisgender woman) drag queen; a drag queen who could pass for a woman, as opposed to one who is exaggeratedly feminine.

Pronunciation

/təˈlɑːpiə/ /tɪˈlɑːpiə/ /tɪˈlæpiə/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-tilapia.wav

Word forms

tilapia tilapias

Etymology

Etymology tree Tswana tlhapider. taxonomic name Tilapialbor. English tilapia Learned borrowing from taxonomic name Tilapia, from Tswana tlhapi (“fish”). The drag race slang usage is a reference to the comment by Gia Gunn on entering Ru Paul's Drag Race (season 6) "Just landed like fresh tilapia".

Synonyms

St. Peter's fish

Derived words

banded tilapia blackchin tilapia blackfin tilapia black tilapia blue tilapia Graham's tilapia Guinean tilapia kariba tilapia longfin tilapia magadi tilapia mango tilapia Manyara tilapia Mozambique tilapia Nile tilapia Okavango tilapia Otjikoto tilapia redbelly tilapia redbreast tilapia Singida tilapia spotted tilapia threespot tilapia Wami tilapia Zill's tilapia
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