turtle

1 of 3

noun (1)

tur·​tle ˈtər-tᵊl 

plural turtles also turtle

often attributive

: any of an order (Testudines synonym Chelonia) of terrestrial, freshwater, and marine reptiles that have a toothless horny beak and a shell of bony dermal plates usually covered with horny shields enclosing the trunk and into which the head, limbs, and tail usually may be withdrawn

turtle

2 of 3

noun (2)

: turtleneck

turtle

3 of 3

noun (3)

archaic

: turtledove

Examples of turtle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Then, during experimental trials over several consecutive days, the team re-created the two magnetic fields but did not feed the turtles. —Jack Tamisiea, Scientific American, 12 Feb. 2025

The turtles spent an equal amount of time in both magnetic fields, but were only fed in one of them. —Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 12 Feb. 2025

The turtles even remembered the location four months later. —Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA TODAY, 12 Feb. 2025

For over a decade, Mansfield and colleagues attached GPS tags to the fast-growing shells of young wild turtles. —Christina Larson, Chicago Tribune, 5 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

modification of French tortue, from Late Latin (bestia) tartarucha, feminine of tartaruchus of Tartarus, from Greek tartarouchos, from Tartaros Tartarus; from Mithraic and early Christian association of the turtle with infernal forces

Noun (3)

Middle English turtil, turtle, going back to Old English turtle, turtla borrowed (with dissimilation, as also in Middle Dutch tortel "turtledove," Old High German turtul, turtila) from Latin turtur, of onomatopoeic origin

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1612, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1952, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing turtle

• alligator snapping turtle
• box turtle
• green turtle
• hawksbill turtle
• mock turtle soup
• mud turtle
• musk turtle
• painted turtle
• ringed turtle dove
• sea turtle
• snapping turtle
• spotted turtle
• turn turtle
• turtle-backed
• turtle bean
• turtle grass

Kids Definition

turtle

1 of 2 noun

tur·​tle ˈtərt-ᵊl 

archaic

: turtledove

turtle

2 of 2 noun

plural turtles also turtle

: any of an order of land, freshwater, and marine reptiles with a toothless horny beak and a bony shell which encloses the body and into which the head, legs, and tail usually may be withdrawn

Etymology

Noun

Old English turtla "turtledove," from Latin turtur (same meaning)

Noun

derived from French tortue "tortoise, turtle," from Latin tartaruchus "of Tartarus (part of Hades reserved for the wicked)," from Greek tartarouchos (same meaning)

Medical Definition

turtle

noun

tur·​tle ˈtərt-ᵊl 

plural turtles also turtle

often attributive

: any of an order (Testudines) of terrestrial, freshwater, and marine reptiles that have a toothless horny beak and a shell of bony dermal plates usually covered with horny shields enclosing the trunk and into which the head, limbs, and tail usually may be withdrawn

called also chelonian