Gadiformes

• The fish originally known by the name 'whiting' in English is Merlangius merlangus
  Merlangius merlangus
  Merlangius merlangus, commonly known as whiting is an important food fish in the eastern North Atlantic, northern Mediterranean, western Baltic, and Black Sea...
  
  , in the family Gadidae
  Gadidae
  Gadidae is a family of marine fish, included in the order Gadiformes. It includes the cod, haddock, whiting, and pollock.Most species of gadid are found in temperate waters of the northern hemisphere, although there are some exceptions. They are generally medium sized fish, and are distinguished...
  
  . This species inhabits the east Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. In the USA it is commonly known as the English whiting.

• In the USA, the name whiting on its own is often used for various species of hake
  Hake
  The term hake refers to fish in either of:* family Phycidae of the northern oceans* family Merlucciidae of the southern oceans-Hake fish:...
  
   in genus Merluccius
  Merlucciidae
  Merlucciidae is a family of cod-like fish, including most hakes.They are native to the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, being common in southern waters off Tasmania and New Zealand....
  
  .

• In Canada, it is used for the Alaska pollock
  Alaska pollock
  Alaska pollock or walleye pollock is a North Pacific species of the cod family Gadidae. While related to the common Atlantic pollock species of the same family, the Alaska pollock is not a member of the same Pollachius genus.The Norwegian pollock , a rare fish of Norwegian waters, may actually be...
  
  , Theragra chalcogramma.

• In the Southern Ocean, Southern blue whiting
  Southern blue whiting
  The southern blue whiting, Micromesistius australis, is a cod of the genus Micromesistius, found in the southern oceans where the temperature is between 3° and 7°C, at depths of between 50 and 900 m...
  
  

Smelt-whitings

• In India, Australia and throughout the Indo-Pacific, the name whiting (with an adjective before it) is used for various species of fish. Well known members of this family include King George whiting
  King George whiting
  The King George whiting, Sillaginodes punctatus , is a coastal marine fish of the smelt-whitings family Sillaginidae. The King George whiting is endemic to Australia, inhabiting the south coast of the country from Jurien Bay, Western Australia to Botany Bay, New South Wales in the east...
  
  , Japanese whiting
  Japanese whiting
  The Japanese whiting, Sillago japonica, is a common species of coastal marine fish belonging to the smelt-whiting family, Sillaginidae...
  
  , northern whiting
  Northern whiting
  The northern whiting, Sillago sihama , is a marine fish, the most widespread and abundant member of the smelt-whiting family Sillaginidae. The northern whiting was the first species of sillaginid scientifically described and is therefore the type species of both the family Sillaginidae and the...
  
  , sand whiting
  Sand whiting
  The sand whiting, Sillago ciliata, is a common species of coastal marine fish of the family Sillaginidae, the smelt-whitings...
  
  and school whiting.