Link Centre Dictionary

whelk

UK/wɛlk/ US/hwɛlk/ uncommon archaic
noun (2) verb (1)

noun

1.
2.

large carnivorous marine gastropods of coastal waters and intertidal regions having a strong snail-like shell

verb

1.

Origin

From Middle English whelke, a variant of welk, from Old English weoloc, wiloc, wioloc, weluc, from Proto-West Germanic *weluk (compare Middle Dutch willoc, Dutch wulk), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *welH- (“to turn, revolve”) (whence vulva and volute). Unetymological spelling with wh- from the 15th century.

Phrases

  • chin whelk

Related words

Broader terms

Parts

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.