lobster Meaning, Definition & Usage

noun flesh of a lobster
noun any of several edible marine crustaceans of the families Homaridae and Nephropsidae and Palinuridae

AS. loppestre, lopystre prob., corrupted fr. L. locusta a marine shellfish, a kind of lobster, a locust. Cf. Locust.

(Zoöl.) Any large macrurous crustacean used as food, esp. those of the genus Homarus; as the American lobster (H. Americanus), and the European lobster (H. vulgaris). The Norwegian lobster (Nephrops Norvegicus) is similar in form. All these have a pair of large unequal claws. The spiny lobsters of more southern waters, belonging to Palinurus, Panulirus, and allied genera, have no large claws. The fresh-water crayfishes are sometimes called lobsters.