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baleen

ba·leen [ bə-ˈlēn]

baleen

noun

[bə-ˈlēn]

Definition of baleen

: a horny keratinous substance found in two rows of transverse plates which hang down from the upper jaws of baleen whales

Recent Examples on the Web

//The whales then push out the water and strain the fish through flexible comb-like structures in their mouths called baleen.
— Sarah Keartes, National Geographic, "How a humpback whale ended up with a sea lion in its mouth," 30 July 2019
//The mammals then filter their food through comb-like structures in their mouths called baleen, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
— Fox News, "California photographer snaps sea lion ‘trapped’ in humpback whale’s mouth: ‘The true Jonah experience’," 31 July 2019
//Ship logs and sailors’ journals noted sperm, right, and humpback whales being killed for baleen—which functioned then in some ways like modern plastic—and blubber, which could be rendered into oil for lamps and industrial machinery.
— Steve Benjamin, National Geographic, "Humpback whales make stunning comeback in southern Africa," 18 July 2019
//One of Reed’s daughters fixed the woman a cot to sleep on in the living room, beneath the baleen and dreamcatchers.
— Kyle Hopkins, ProPublica, "ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network," 16 May 2019
//But some later lost their teeth, developing plates of bristle-like baleen in their mouths that’s used to filter small prey such as krill from the water.
— National Geographic, "Prehistoric Toothless Whale Among Oldest of Its Kind," 19 Apr. 2018
//The situation is much the same in the United States, where 589 large whales (baleen and sperm) were confirmed stranded and dead between 2007 and 2017, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
— National Geographic, "This Man Has Helped Give 460 Dead Whales a Second Life—As Art," 9 Apr. 2018
//But as Sarah McQuate reports for Nature, scientists have uncovered the oldest baleen-whale relative yet.
— Jason Daley, Smithsonian, "This 36-Million-Year-Old Fossil Is a “Missing Link” in Whale Evolution," 15 May 2017
//How did whales make the jump from using teeth to baleen?
— Jennifer S. Holland, Smithsonian, "A Whale’s Baleen Bristles Reveal the Story of Its Life," 1 Sep. 2017

First Known Use of baleen

14th century, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for baleen

Middle English baleine whale, baleen, from Latin balaena whale; akin to Greek phallaina whale

Dictionary Entries near baleen