I. ˈshrimp, esp South ˈsri-, dial ˈswi- noun
( plural shrimps also shrimp )
Etymology: Middle English shrimpe shrimp (crustacean), puny person; akin to Middle High German schrimpf scratch, slight wound, schrimpfen to wrinkle, Swedish skrympa to shrink, Latin curvus curved — more at crown
1.
a. : any of numerous relatively small mostly marine decapod crustaceans (suborder Natantia) having a slender elongated body with a laterally compressed abdomen, long legs, and a long, more or less spiny rostrum
b. : any of various small crustaceans (as mysids, euphausids, amphipods, and branchiopods) that resemble the true shrimps — often used with a qualifying term; see brine shrimp , fairy shrimp ; compare prawn
2. : a very small or puny person or thing — usually used disparagingly
an unimposing little shrimp of a man — Living Age
3. or shrimp pink or shrimp red : a variable color averaging a deep pink that is bluer, lighter, and stronger than average coral and stronger and slightly yellower and lighter than fiesta
II. intransitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
: to fish for or catch shrimps
shrimping further offshore — Fishing Gazette