Definition of "mackerel" []

• Any of several widely distributed marine fishes of the family Scombridae, especially the Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus), an important food fish having dark wavy bars on the back and a silvery belly. (noun)
• Any of the smaller fishes of the suborder Scombroidea, such as the Spanish mackerel. (noun)
• Any of various similar fishes. (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.

• "Another problem with mackerel is that once a prisoner's sentence is up, there's little to do with it -- the fish can't be redeemed for cash, and has little value on the outside."
• "The sky was what is called a mackerel sky—rows and rows of faint down-plumes of cloud, just tinted with the midsummer sunset."
• "Gavin and Grandad were fishing for mackerel from the harbor wall when the seal popped its head out of the water."