Swordfish, common name applied to a large, marine, acanthopterygian (spiny-finned) fish found in tropical and subtropical seas. The swordfish averages about 113 kg (about 250 lb), but individual fish have been caught that weigh more than four times that much. The swordfish has a large dorsal fin, lacks pelvic fins, and is characterized by the fusion and prolongation of the bones of the upper jaw to form a rigid, swordlike beak that often constitutes one-third of the total body length. Swordfish feed on large mollusks and on other fish; the adult swordfish has no teeth. Swordfish meat is edible and nutritious, and swordfish hunting is a profitable sport. Swordfish are hunted with harpoons as well as with big-game fishing equipment. The fish, when wounded, jump out of the water and thrash about, thrusting their beaks at whatever is in their path. Sometimes swordfish feign exhaustion; when approached by a boat, the fish have been known to drive their beaks into solid-wood planking 5 cm (2 in) thick. The swordfish is also known as the broadbill, and the name swordfish is sometimes applied to the gar pike and to the cutlass fish. See also Marlin; Sailfish.

Scientific classification: The swordfish, classified as Xiphias gladius, is the only member of the family Xiphiidae.
 

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