Illustration of sperm whale
: a very large toothed whale (Physeter macrocephalus synonym P. catodon) that has large conical teeth in the lower jaw, a single blowhole, and a massive squarish head with a closed cavity containing a fluid mixture of spermaceti and oil, and that may reach a length in the male of nearly 60 feet (18.3 meters)
Examples of sperm whale in a Sentence
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In 2018, a team of archaeologists discovered a fragment of a sperm whale tooth at Valencina, a Copper Age archaeological site near Seville in southwest Spain.
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Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 19 June 2025
An adult sperm whale washed ashore on the Oregon coast last week, and according to a necropsy conducted by researchers, it could have been hit by a vessel.
—Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 2 June 2025
And when it was first named 100 years ago, the species was described by looking at partial specimens found in the stomach of a sperm whale.
—New Atlas, 16 Apr. 2025
The museum’s collection includes centuries-old books and a bottle of ambergris (a substance produced in the digestive system of sperm whales), as well as elaborations on perfume’s long history.
—Shauna Lyon, New Yorker, 4 July 2025
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Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 19 June 2025
An adult sperm whale washed ashore on the Oregon coast last week, and according to a necropsy conducted by researchers, it could have been hit by a vessel.
—Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 2 June 2025
And when it was first named 100 years ago, the species was described by looking at partial specimens found in the stomach of a sperm whale.
—New Atlas, 16 Apr. 2025
The museum’s collection includes centuries-old books and a bottle of ambergris (a substance produced in the digestive system of sperm whales), as well as elaborations on perfume’s long history.
—Shauna Lyon, New Yorker, 4 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for sperm whale
Cite this Entry
“Sperm whale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sperm%20whale. Accessed 20 Jul. 2025.
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