shrimp = 20:15 Apr 11, 2009
1. a. Any of the slender, long-tailed, long-legged (chiefly marine) crustaceans of the genus Crangon and allied genera, closely related to the prawns; esp. C. vulgaris, the common shrimp, which inhabits the sand on the coasts of Great Britain and is a common article of food. Also, in a wider sense, applied to various similar crustaceans, as the families Mysidæ and Gammaridæ; see brine, fairy, opossum shrimp, etc.
†b. Applied to a scaly monster. Obs.
c. A shrimp or prawn used as a bait in angling.
d. A colour resembling that of a cooked shrimp, a bright shade of pink.
2. a. A diminutive or puny person (rarely thing). Chiefly contemptuous.
b. a shrimp of a —: a diminutive, a very minute or tiny —.
3. attrib. and Comb.
b. shrimp-boat, a boat engaged in fishing for shrimps; shrimp cocktail [cocktail n. 4], a dish of boiled shrimps served cold in a sauce; shrimp cracker, a light, crisp cracker flavoured with shrimp and served as an accompaniment to Oriental food; shrimp-fixer (see quot. 1850); shrimp gumbo U.S., a shrimp soup thickened with okra pods; shrimp-hearted a., pusillanimous; shrimp-louse (see quot. 1850); shrimp plant, an evergreen shrub |