noun

quahog

KWAH-hawg/ˈkwɔːhɔːɡ/

An edible hard-shell clam of the Atlantic coast.

The hard-shelled quahog rests partly open beside the gathering basket.

A large hard-shell quahog rests partly open on Atlantic shore sand beside a shellfish gatherer's basket; a respectful seventeenth-century coastal Indigenous harvesting scene in the distance connects the documented source language.

Etymology

The possible Narragansett source means “hard clam,” directly matching the shellfish named in English. Its Algonquian origin is secure, but the particular source may instead be Pequot p'quaghhaug, with the same meaning.

In context

Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology speaker1:29

We still harvest a lot of shellfish, whether that's quahog or conch or mussels.

Wampanoag Voices - Elizabeth James-Perry - Eel Trap

Insider Food speaker7:09

Giant quahog clams are stuffed with clam,

The Most Iconic Food In Every State | 50 State Favorites

More examples

We dig for quahogs in the sand at low tide.
She adds chopped quahogs to a pot of chowder.
A quahog has a thick, rounded shell.

Forms

quahog · quahogs

Similar words

hard clam: Another common name for the same hard-shelled Atlantic clam.
clam: A broader term covering quahogs and other similar shellfish.