Small to medium-sized freshwater fish from South America with sharp teeth, known for their aggressive feeding behavior in groups.
From Portuguese 'piranha,' from Tupi (an indigenous South American language) 'pira' (fish) and 'anha' (tooth). The word was adopted into Portuguese during colonial contact with Brazil.
Piranhas have an unfair reputation thanks to Hollywood—they're actually timid scavengers that only attack in massive groups when starving, yet the word piranha has become synonymous with mindless aggression in pop culture!
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