ˈbərbət noun
( plural burbot also burbots )
Etymology: Middle English borbot, from Middle French bourbotte, bourbete, from bourbeter to burrow in the mud, from Old French, from bourbe mud, probably of Celtic origin; akin to Middle Irish berbaim I boil, Welsh berwi to boil, Gaulish Borvo, deity associated with medicinal springs; akin to Latin fervēre to boil — more at burn
: a freshwater fish ( Lota lota ) that is related to the cod, has two small barbels on the nose and a larger one on the chin, and is usually held to exist in distinct forms in the northern parts of the Old World and the New, that of the latter being recognized as a subspecies ( Lota lota maculosa ) — called also eelpout ; see lawyer , ling