Definition of "mussel" []

• Any of several marine bivalve mollusks, especially the edible members of the family Mytilidae and in particular Mytilus edulis, a blue-black species raised commercially in Europe. Mussels are often found attached to rocky surfaces or the sides of ships. (noun)
• Any of several freshwater bivalve mollusks of the genera Anodonta and Unio, found in the central United States, that burrow in the sand or mud of lakes and streams. (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 flesh of a fresh mussel is weak and insubstantial, and it's like putting a raw egg yoke on the hook as bait."
• "And when in Normandy, eat the mussels as the Normans do: grab one empty shell in one hand and use it to pluck the plump mussel from the shell in your other hand."
• "It had been swimming in the lake -- for muskrats are good swimmers -- when it had found a fresh-water mussel, which is like a clam except that it has a longer shell that is black instead of white."