Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Mallotus \Mal*lo"tus\, n. [NL., fr Gr. ? fleecy.] (Zo["o]l.)
   A genus of small Arctic fishes. One American species, the
   capelin ({Mallotus villosus}), is extensively used as bait
   for cod.

Capelin \Cape"lin\, n. [Cf. F. capelan, caplan.] (Zo["o]l.)
   A small marine fish ({Mallotus villosus}) of the family
   {Salmonid[ae]}, very abundant on the coasts of Greenland,
   Iceland, Newfoundland, and Alaska. It is used as a bait for
   the cod. [Written also {capelan} and {caplin}.]

   Note: This fish, which is like a smelt, is called by the
         Spaniards anchova, and by the Portuguese capelina.
         --Fisheries of U. S. (1884).