catfish Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun flesh of scaleless food fish of the southern United States; often farmed
    mudcat.
  2. noun large ferocious northern deep-sea food fishes with strong teeth and no pelvic fins
    wolf fish; wolffish.
  3. noun any of numerous mostly freshwater bottom-living fishes of Eurasia and North America with barbels like whiskers around the mouth
    siluriform fish.

WordNet

Cat"fish` noun
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) A name given in the United States to various species of siluroid fishes; as, the yellow cat (Amiurus natalis); the bind cat (Gronias nigrilabrus); the mud cat (Pilodictic oilwaris), the stone cat (Noturus flavus); the sea cat (Arius felis), etc. This name is also sometimes applied to the wolf fish. See Bullhrad.

Webster 1913