What does eel mean?
An eel is a long, snake-like fish with a slender muscular body and reduced fins, belonging to the order Anguilliformes. Eels inhabit rivers, lakes, and oceans worldwide, and several species — notably the European eel and the American eel — undertake extraordinary migrations between freshwater habitats and distant oceanic spawning grounds. As food, eel has long featured in cuisines from Japanese kabayaki and unagi dishes to British jellied eels and smoked preparations; in such contexts the word is uncountable, while individual animals are countable. Beyond biology, "eel" has entered everyday figurative speech: describing someone as "as slippery as an eel" suggests they are cunningly evasive and difficult to trap or hold to account. The word's vivid imagery and culinary significance make it both practically useful and culturally resonant across many English-speaking regions.
A snake-like fish with an elongated body, belonging to the order Anguilliformes, found in fresh and salt water.
"Anglers sometimes mistake a large lamprey for an eel because of its similar shape."
Countable when referring to the animal; uncountable when referring to the flesh eaten as food ("a plate of eel").
Used figuratively, a person regarded as slippery, elusive, or difficult to catch or hold responsible.
"The con artist slipped away once more — he was as slippery as an eel."
Regular plural. When referring to the flesh as food, the word remains uncountable.
"Glass eels drift for months before reaching coastal estuaries."
European eels migrate thousands of miles into the Sargasso Sea to breed — a spawning ground so mysterious that scientists only confirmed it after decades of searching.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of eel
"Eel" descends from Old English "æl", which traces back through Proto-Germanic roots shared with related words in other Germanic languages, such as German "Aal" and Dutch "aal". The word is one of the oldest attested fish names in English, appearing in early medieval texts. Despite this deep history, the word has remained remarkably stable in form and meaning for well over a thousand years.
Related word forms
How eel is actually used
"Eel" functions as both countable (an eel, several eels) and, when referring to the flesh as food, uncountable (a dish of eel). The figurative use almost always appears in the phrase "slippery as an eel" and carries a mildly disapproving tone.
Easily confused with eel
Eelgrass is an underwater flowering plant named for its long ribbon-like leaves, whereas an eel is an actual fish.