sprat
Small oily fish
A sprat is a small silvery fish related to the herring, found in European coastal waters and often sold smoked or canned.
The word appears in the proverb throw out a sprat to catch a mackerel—risking something small to gain something larger.
By extension, sprat can mean any small or insignificant person or thing.
Small herring-family fish
- anchovySmall, salty forage fish
- herringSmall silvery Atlantic fish
- pilchardSmall edible sea fish
- whitebaitYoung fish eaten whole
brisling · mackerel · baitfish · smelt · minnow · fishery · trawler · gillnet
Exposed to wood fumes
- friedCooked in hot fat
- pickledPreserved in acidic solution
- cannedSealed for preservation
- BalticNorthern European maritime region
tapas · appetizer · toast · pâté · preserved · salted · oily · snack
Extremely small in size
- diminutiveVery small, or nickname form
- minusculeExtremely small in size
- weeExtremely small
- littleSmall in degree
insignificant · tiddler · fingerling · juvenile · undersized · bantam · petite · young
Formal education received
- swarmMass of moving insects
- clusterGathered group nearby
- congregationAssembled group of worshippers
- throngDense pressing crowd
aggregate · multitude · mass · gathering · collective · flock · horde · silvery
Swift, oily ocean fish
investment · venture · proverb · saying · trade · bait · speculation · opportunity
sardine
Small herring-family fish
whitebait · brisling · mackerel · baitfish · smelt · minnow · fishery · trawler · gillnet · netting
smoked
Exposed to wood fumes
Baltic · tapas · appetizer · toast · pâté · preserved · salted · oily · snack · delicacy
tiny
Extremely small in size
- diminutiveVery small, or nickname form
- minusculeExtremely small in size
- weeExtremely small
little · insignificant · tiddler · fingerling · juvenile · undersized · bantam · petite · young · immature
schooling
Formal education received
- swarmMass of moving insects
- clusterGathered group nearby
- congregationAssembled group of worshippers
throng · aggregate · multitude · mass · gathering · collective · flock · horde · silvery · darting
mackerel
Swift, oily ocean fish
reward · investment · venture · proverb · saying · trade · bait · speculation · opportunity · bargain
- sea lifeshark, whale, dolphin, salmon, jellyfish
- Atlantic fishAtlantic cod, Atlantic salmon, haddock, pollock, pollack
- North Atlantic lifeAtlantic cod, Atlantic salmon, cod, herring, haddock
- baitfishanchovy, menhaden, sardine, shiner, minnow
- Baltic wildlifegrey seal, harbor seal, herring, cod, flounder
- Black SeaBlack Sea, Bosporus, Bosphorus, Dardanelles, Crimea
- Jack SpratNursery rhyme dieter