ti·la·pi·a (t?-lä?p?-?, -l??-)n. Any of various cichlid fishes of the genera Tilapia, Oreochromis, and Sarotherodon, native to Africa and the Middle East and raised for food in many parts of the world.[New Latin Tilapia, genus name, from Tswana tlhapi, fish.]American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.tilapia (t??læp??; -?le?-) n (Animals) any mouthbrooding cichlid fish of the African freshwater genus Tilapia: used as food fishes[C18: from New Latin]Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014ti?la?pi?a (t??l? pi ?, -?le?-) n., pl. -pi?as. any freshwater cichlid of the genus Tilapia, of African waters: an important food fish. [