turtle

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.

turtle^¹

/ˈtɜːtl̩/ UK
/ˈtɝtl̩/ US
[ˈtʰɝɾɫ̩] US

Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)təl

Where it comes from

Modification of Middle English tortou, tortu, from Old French tortüe (under the influence of Middle English turtel, turtur (“turtledove”), see Etymology 2 below), from Old Occitan tortuga (compare Spanish tortuga), the same source of tortoise (see there for more). Displaced native Old English byrdling (See birdling).

noun turtles · tortle

Canada, US Any land, aquatic, or semi-aquatic reptile of the order Testudines, characterised by a protective shell enclosing its body. See also tortoise. A unique anti-aphrodisiac was the heart of a turtle carried in a wolf's skin. It prevented a person from ever being tempted amorously.
Similar: birdling, shellpad, shield-toad
Australia, Canada, UK, US, specifically A marine reptile of that order.
Similar: birdling, shellpad, shield-toad, sea turtle
Senses resembling a turtle in protection
historical An Ancient Roman attack method, where the shields held by the soldiers hide them, not only left, right, front and back, but also from above.
Similar: testudo
A type of robot having a domed case (and so resembling the reptile), used in education, especially for making line drawings by means of a computer program.
An on-screen cursor that serves the same function as a turtle for drawing. Depending on which version of Logo you have, the turtle may look like an actual animal with a head and four legs or — as in Berkeley Logo — it may be represented as a triangle.
A breakdancing move consisting of a float during which the dancer's weight shifts from one hand to the other, producing rotation or a circular "walk".
A position reminiscent of a turtle. At home the child can have a simple horizontal bar on which he may swing by his hands. He may also use dumb-bells and clubs. A very valuable position is what may be called the "turtle position." The patient lies prone upon the face, with the arms extended, and with the head carried upward and backwa
A position in which a person drops down all fours, limbs and chin tucked in, to protect their core.
A low stand for a lamp, etc. Alan Bermingham, Location Lighting for Television Using an appropriate turtle allows the full range of pan and tilt adjustments on the luminaire and avoids possible heat damage to floor coverings.
A candy with pecans, caramel, and chocolate, often shaped like a turtle.
historical The curved plate in which the form is held in a type-revolving cylinder press.
Senses resembling a turtle in slowness
A small element towards the end of a list of items to be bubble sorted, and thus tending to take a long time to be swapped into its correct position.

verb turtles · turtling · turtled · tortle

intransitive To flip over onto the back or top; to turn upside down. Were speeding when car turtled […] Auto crashed into curb and turtled.
intransitive To turn and swim upside down. I turtled my board beneath it, flipped upright, and started paddling again.
intransitive, of a ship To capsize, turning fully over.
Similar: turn turtle
intransitive To fall with one arm behind a rope, forcing the climber to dangle on their back, leaving them helpless.
intransitive To move along slowly. We turtled along in Manitoba, back into the heart of the prairies.
intransitive To hunt turtles, especially in the water. Of these, 80 turtled (65%), 26 hunted and turtled (20%), and 18 hunted (15%).
intransitive To build up a large defense force and strike only occasionally, rather than going for an offensive strategy.
abbreviation, ellipsis, euphemistic, idiomatic, intransitive, slang Ellipsis of turtle head (“to struggle to hold back an imminent bowel movement”).
Similar: prairie dog, crown, grow a tail

turtle^²

/ˈtɜːtl̩/ UK
/ˈtɝtl̩/ US
[ˈtʰɝɾɫ̩] US

Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)təl

Where it comes from

From Middle English turtle, tortle, turtel, turtul, from Old English turtle, turtla (“turtledove”), ultimately from Latin turtur (“turtledove”), of imitative origin.

noun turtles

archaic, intransitive A turtle dove. The same he tooke, and with a riband new, / In which his Ladies colours were, did bind / About the turtles neck […].

turtle^³

/ˈtɜːtl̩/ UK
/ˈtɝtl̩/ US
[ˈtʰɝɾɫ̩] US

Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)təl

Where it comes from

Ellipsis of turtle-neck

noun turtles

intransitive A turtle-neck garment.

Turtle^⁴

proper noun

A river in Saskatchewan, Canada.
An extinct town in Dent County, Missouri, United States.
A town in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States.
A surname, thought to be derived from the turtle dove.

noun Turtles

A member of the Ancient and Honorable Order of Turtles, a drinking club.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: tortoise, hawksbill, leatherback, ridley, swordfish, dove, pet, spotted, snapping, snapper, stinkpot, loggerhead, pair, johnny, blanding, doves

noun

Translations

Every language

noun land or marine reptile with a shell

Español	tortuga, quelonio
한국어	거북 geobuk, 바다거북 badageobuk
日本語	亀 kame, カメ kame
中文	龜 /龟 guī, 烏龜 /乌龟 wūguī, 王八 wángba, 鱉 /鳖 biē
हिन्दी	कछुआ kachuā
Kiswahili	kobe class I/IX
Português	tartaruga
Français	tortue
Deutsch	Schildkröte
Italiano	tartaruga, testuggine
Ελληνικά	χελώνα chelóna
Română	broască țestoasă
Русский	черепа́ха čerepáxa, желвь želvʹ
Tiếng Việt	rùa
العربية	سُلَحْفَاة sulaḥfāh, غَيْلَم ḡaylam
עברית	צָב tsav

noun sea turtle

日本語	海亀 umigame
Kiswahili	kasa
Português	tartaruga, tartaruga marinha
Français	tortue de mer
Ελληνικά	νεροχελώνα nerochelóna
Русский	черепа́ха čerepáxa, морска́я черепа́ха morskája čerepáxa

noun Roman attack method

Français	tortue
Русский	черепа́ха čerepáxa

verb flip over onto the back or top; to turn upside down

Español	volcar, dar una vuelta de campana
Français	capoter, se renverser, faire un tonneau
Italiano	ribaltare

verb hunt turtles

Français	chasser

Talk about this word

Cite this

MLA

"turtle." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/turtle. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

turtle. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/turtle

Chicago

"turtle." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/turtle.

BibTeX

@misc{turtle_2026,
  title = {turtle},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/turtle},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}

turtle

AI In plain words

turtle¹

Where it comes from

noun turtles · tortle

verb turtles · turtling · turtled · tortle

turtle²

Where it comes from

noun turtles

turtle³

Where it comes from

noun turtles

Turtle⁴

proper noun

noun Turtles

Thesaurus

Translations

noun land or marine reptile with a shell

noun sea turtle

noun Roman attack method

verb flip over onto the back or top; to turn upside down

verb hunt turtles

turtle^¹

turtle^²

turtle^³

Turtle^⁴