humpback whale

noun

: a large baleen whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) that is black above and white below and has very long flippers and fleshy tubercles along the snout

Illustration of humpback whale

Illustration of humpback whale

Examples of humpback whale in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Visitors can watch humpback whales surface offshore, ride a tram above downtown, stand face-to-face with or even on Mendenhall Glacier, a river of ice flowing from the vast Juneau Icefield. Josh Rivera, USA Today, 14 May 2026 This is also when humpback whales begin migrating from icy Antarctica to breed in the warmer waters off the coast of Bahia and Rio de Janeiro. Irenie Forshaw, TheWeek, 12 May 2026 One afternoon in November, just north of the small Oregon coastal town of Yachats, a juvenile humpback whale tumbled ashore. Robin Romm, The Atlantic, 2 May 2026 The fact that a humpback whale had been dredged out for days by volunteers, corralled into a barge and released into the North Sea demonstrated a collective good will toward nature that can seem all too rare. Jessica Camille Aguirre, New Yorker, 2 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for humpback whale

Word History

First Known Use

1726, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of humpback whale was in 1726

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Cite this Entry

“Humpback whale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/humpback%20whale. Accessed 20 May. 2026.

Kids Definition

humpback whale

noun
: a large baleen whale that is black above and white below and has very long flippers

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