soft-shell crab

Definition of Soft-shell Crab in English :

1. soft-shell crab, soft-shelled crab

freshly molted crab with new shell still tender and flexible

2. soft-shell crab, soft-shelled crab

edible crab that has recently molted and not yet formed its new shell

WordNet Lexical Database for English. Princeton University. 2010.

Soft-shell Crab

noun

a crab, esp of the edible species Cancer pagurus, that has recently moulted and has not yet formed its new shell

Compare hard-shell crab

n.

A marine crab before its shell has hardened after molting, especially a blue crab in this stage. Soft-shell crabs can be cooked and eaten whole.