[ noun ] very small northern fish; forage for sea birds and marine mammals and other fishes <noun.animal>
Caplin \Cap"lin\, n. See {Capelin}.
Caplin \Cap"lin\, Capling \Cap"ling\, n. The cap or coupling of a flail, through which the thongs pass which connect the handle and swingel. --Wright.
Capelin \Cape"lin\, n. [Cf. F. capelan, caplan.] (Zo["o]l.) Either of two small marine fishes formerly classified in the family {Salmonid[ae]}, now within the smelt family {Osmeridae}: {Mallotus villosus}, very abundant on the coasts of Greenland, Iceland, Newfoundland, and Alaska; or {Mallotus catervarius}, found in the North Pacific. The Atlantic variety has been used as a bait for the cod. [Written also {capelan} and {caplin}.] [1913 Webster + PJC]
Note: This fish, which is like a smelt, is called by the Spaniards anchova, and by the Portuguese capelina. However the {anchovy} used as a food is a different fish. --Fisheries of U. S. (1884). [1913 Webster + PJC] ||