Definition of "whalebone" []

• The elastic, horny material forming the fringed plates that hang from the upper jaw of baleen whales and strain plankton from the water. Also called baleen. (noun)
• An object made of this material. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The substance which we call whalebone is not true bone."
• "It yields the article commonly known as whalebone or baleen; and the oil specially known as “whale oil,” an inferior article in commerce."
• "In the seam of one of the remaining divisions is inclosed a piece of whalebone, which is drawn over the head, and forms a perfect arch, leaving the head and neck bare."