/men hayd"n/ , n. , pl. menhaden .
any marine clupeid fish of the genus Brevoortia, esp. B. tyrannus, resembling a shad but with a more compressed body, common along the eastern coast of the U.S., and used for making oil and fertilizer.
[ 1635-45, Amer.; perh. munnawhatteaûg, influenced by E dial. poghaden; cf. POGY 1 ]