| Common name | Gray herring |
| Language | English |
| Type | Vernacular |
| Official trade name | No |
| Rank | 3 - (Other common name) |
| Country | United States (contiguous states) |
| Locality | |
| Ref. | Whitehead, P.J.P., 1985 |
| Life stage | juveniles and adults |
| Sex | females and males |
| Core | |
| 1st modifier | |
| 2nd modifier | |
| Remarks | 'herring', from Old English 'haering', i.e., the gray fish, from prehistoric West Germanic 'kheringgaz', i.e., 'kher' = English 'hoar', i.e., silvery gray color of herring (p. 281 in Ref. 11979). |