Dŏl'phĭn, n.
n. [Lat. delphin, delphinus, Gr. δελφῖν, It. delfino, Sp. delfín, Pg. delfim, Pr. dalfin, Fr. dauphin, W. dolfyn.]
Sense 1. (Ichth.) (a.) A cetaceous mammal, of the genus Delphinus (D. delphis); the true dolphin. (b.) The Coryphaena hippuris, a fish of about five feet in length, celebrated for its surprising changes of color when dying. It is the fish commonly known as the dolphin.
The dolphin of the ancients (D. delphis) is common in the Mediterranean and Atlantic, and attains a length of from six to eight feet.
Sense 2. (Gr. Antiq.) A mass of iron or lead hung so as to be dropped on any vessel passing under it.
Sense 3. (Naut.) (a.) A rope or strap wound round a mast to support the puddening when the lower yards rest in the slings. (b.) A spar or buoy secured to an anchor and furnished with a ring to which cables may be bent. R. H. Dana. (c.) A mooring-post at the entrance of a dock, or on a quay or wharf. Ogilvie.
Sense 4. Any thing shaped like a dolphin; as the handle of a gun, so formed; or the figure of the fish used in architecture as an emblem of love and social feeling. Fairholt.
