tortoiseshell
English · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
tortoiseshell
- /ˈtɔː(ɹ)təˌʃɛl/
- /ˈtɔː(ɹ)təsˌʃɛl/
Where it comes from
From tortoise + shell.
noun tortoiseshells
- The horny, translucent, mottled covering of the carapace of the hawksbill turtle, used as a veneer etc.
- The hawksbill turtle.
- A domestic cat (or a rabbit, guinea-pig, etc.) whose fur has black, brown and yellow markings.
- Any of several butterflies, mostly of the genera Nymphalis and Aglais that have similar markings. Other common farmland butterflies to have suffered steep declines include the small tortoiseshell (64%), the wall brown (37%) and the large skipper (35%).
- Clipping of tortoiseshell cat Tigerclaw’s eyes flashed at the little tortoiseshell’s words. “I wouldn’t dare argue with you, dear Spottedleaf,” he purred. He turned to leave and caught sight of Graypaw and Firepaw. “Who’s this?” he asked Graypaw, towering above them.
adjective
- Made of the covering of carapace of hawksbill turtle.
- Having markings resembling covering of carapace of hawksbill turtle. Speaking of round sunglasses, these lightweight polarized ones and come in two shades of tortoiseshell as well as black and bronze.
Thesaurus
Translations
Every language
noun covering of carapace of hawksbill turtle
| Español | carey |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 鼈甲 bekkō, べっ甲 bekkō |
| Deutsch | Schildpatt |
noun pet whose fur has black, brown and yellow markings
| 中文 | 玳瑁 dàimào |
|---|---|
| Français | écaille de tortue |
| Deutsch | Schildpatt |
noun type of butterfly
| Deutsch | Fuchs |
|---|
adj made of covering of carapace of hawksbill turtle
| Español | de carey |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | aus Schildpatt |
Talk about this word "tortoiseshell." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/tortoiseshell. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. tortoiseshell. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/tortoiseshell "tortoiseshell." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/tortoiseshell.Cite this
@misc{tortoiseshell_2026,
title = {tortoiseshell},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/tortoiseshell},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
