eel Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun the fatty flesh of eel; an elongate fish found in fresh water in Europe and America; large eels are usually smoked or pickled
  2. noun voracious snakelike marine or freshwater fishes with smooth slimy usually scaleless skin and having a continuous vertical fin but no ventral fins

WordNet

Eel noun
Etymology
AS. l; akin to D., G., & Dan. aal, Icel. all, Sw. ål.
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) An elongated fish of many genera and species. The common eels of Europe and America belong to the genus Anguilla. The electrical eel is a species of Gymnotus. The so called vinegar eel is a minute nematode worm. See Conger eel, Electric eel, and Gymnotus.

Webster 1913