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# pufferfish

noun (a pufferfish, pufferfish or pufferfishes); also puffer, blowfish

«pufferfish» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

A pufferfish is a fish that can quickly swallow water to blow itself up into a big, round, often spiky ball to scare off predators. Many kinds are very poisonous. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/pufferfish/#m1)

### In the lessons

In science lessons pufferfish show defence adaptations: puffing up makes them hard to swallow, and many contain a strong poison (tetrodotoxin) that has no known antidote. In Japan, pufferfish (fugu) is eaten as a delicacy, prepared only by specially trained chefs. Some male pufferfish make beautiful circle patterns in the sand to attract females. Phrases: «puff up like a pufferfish», «fugu».

### Examples

- The pufferfish blew itself up into a spiky ball. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/pufferfish/#x1)
- Many pufferfish are poisonous to eat. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/pufferfish/#x2)
- In Japan, only licensed chefs may prepare pufferfish. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/pufferfish/#x3)
- A male pufferfish drew a circle pattern in the sand. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/pufferfish/#x4)
- Puffing up makes the pufferfish too big for most predators to swallow. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/pufferfish/#x5)
- We saw a pufferfish while snorkelling in Australia. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/pufferfish/#x6)

### Note

Plural usually «pufferfish», sometimes «pufferfishes». Also called «blowfish» or «puffer». Safety: never touch or eat a pufferfish you find on a beach.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «pufferfish» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/pufferfish/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«pufferfish» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/pufferfish.html) on Mova free.