shell
Part of speech: noun
verb
Morphological type: simple
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Etymology: Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH-
Proto-Indo-European *skolH-yeh₂
Proto-Germanic *skaljō
Proto-West Germanic *skallju
Old English sċiell
Middle English schelle
English shell
From Middle English schelle, from Old English sċel, sċell, sċiell, sċil, sċill, sċyl, sċyll, from Proto-West Germanic *skallju, from Proto-Germanic *skaljō (“shell; husk; rind; peel”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH- (“to cut; to separate, split”).
Cognates
Cognate with Dutch schil (“bark, rind, skin; crust; shell; slice”), Danish skæl (“scale; dandruff”), Faroese and Icelandic skel (“shell”), Norwegian Bokmål skjell (“shell; scale”), Norwegian Nynorsk skjel (“shell; bivalve; scale; carapace”), Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌻𐌾𐌰 (skalja, “brick, tile”), French écaille (“scale; shell”), Friulian scae (“scale”), Italian scaglia (“scale; flake, sliver; splinter”); also Breton killi (“grove”), Cornish kelli (“grove”), Irish coill (“forest, wood”), Manx keyll (“forest, wood; grove, plantation”), Scottish Gaelic coille (“forest”), Welsh celli (“grove”), Latin scalpō (“to scratch; to carve”), Ancient Greek σκᾰ́λλω (skắllō, “to hoe, stir up”), Albanian çel (“to open up; to sprout; to hatch up; to rise”), Lithuanian skelti (“to crack, split”), Bulgarian, Macedonian, and Russian скала́ (skalá, “cliff, rock”), Czech skála (“rock”), Polish skała, skáła, szkała (“rock”), Slovak and Slovene skala (“rock”), Ukrainian скала́ (skalá), ска́ля (skálja, “cliff, rock”), Armenian քաղել (kʻaġel, “to pick; to gather; to mow”), Sanskrit कॢप् (kḷp, “to order; to manage; to perform; to create; to cut”). More at shale.
Doublet of sheal.
* (computing): From being viewed as an outer layer of interface between the user and the operating-system internals.
Inflected forms:
form: shells
pos: noun
tags: plural
form: shells
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: shelling
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: shelled
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: shelled
pos: verb
tags: past
Senses:
gloss: A hard external covering of an animal.
pos: noun
examples: In some mollusks, as the cuttlefish, the shell is concealed by the animal's outer mantle and is considered internal.
Genuine mother-of-pearl buttons are made from sea shells.
[…] if with thee the roaring wells
⁠Should gulf him fathom-deep in brine;
⁠And hands so often clasp’d in mine,
Should toss with tangle and with shells.
gloss: A hard external covering of an animal.
pos: noun
tags: broadly
gloss: A hard external covering of an animal.
pos: noun
gloss: A hard external covering of an animal.
pos: noun
gloss: A hard external covering of an animal.
pos: noun
gloss: The hard calcareous covering of a bird egg.
pos: noun
gloss: One of the outer layers of skin of an onion.
pos: noun
examples: The restaurant served caramelized onion shells.
gloss: The hard external covering of various plant seed forms.
pos: noun
examples: The black walnut and the hickory nut, both of the same Genus as the pecan, have much thicker and harder shells than the pecan.
gloss: The hard external covering of various plant seed forms.
pos: noun
gloss: The hard external covering of various plant seed forms.
pos: noun
tags: in-plural
gloss: The accreted mineral formed around a hollow geode.
pos: noun
gloss: The casing of a self-contained single-unit artillery projectile.
pos: noun
gloss: A hollow, usually spherical or cylindrical projectile fired from a siege mortar or a smoothbore cannon. It contains an explosive substance designed to be ignited by a fuse or by percussion at the target site so that it will burst and scatter at high velocity its contents and fragments. Formerly called a bomb.
pos: noun
gloss: The cartridge of a breechloading firearm; a load; a bullet; a round.
pos: noun
gloss: Any slight hollow structure; a framework, or exterior structure, regarded as not complete or filled in, as the shell of a house.
pos: noun
gloss: A garment, usually worn by women, such as a shirt, blouse, or top, with short sleeves or no sleeves, that often fastens in the rear.
pos: noun
gloss: A coarse or flimsy coffin; a thin interior coffin enclosed within a more substantial one.
pos: noun
examples: Upstairs in that chill darkened room which nobody passes who can help it , the old Baronet lies in his coffin shell - an awful form faintly defined beneath the sheet
gloss: An unmarked vehicle for carrying corpses from a crime scene.
pos: noun
examples: Then they lifted the body into the bag, setting it down like something breakable, zipped the bag, wrapped the whole thing in polythene and carried the stretcher into the shell.
gloss: A string instrument, as a lyre, whose acoustical chamber is formed like a shell.
pos: noun
examples: The first lyre may have been made by drawing strings over the underside of a tortoise shell.
when Jubal struck the chorded shell
gloss: The body of a drum; the often wooden, often cylindrical acoustic chamber, with or without rims added for tuning and for attaching the drum head.
pos: noun
gloss: An engraved copper roller used in print works.
pos: noun
gloss: The thin coating of copper on an electrotype.
pos: noun
gloss: The watertight outer covering of the hull of a vessel, often made with planking or metal plating.
pos: noun
gloss: The outer frame or case of a block within which the sheaves revolve.
pos: noun
gloss: A light boat whose frame is covered with thin wood, impermeable fabric, or water-proofed paper; a racing shell or dragon boat.
pos: noun
gloss: A set of atomic orbitals that have the same principal quantum number.
pos: noun
gloss: The outward form independent of what is inside.
pos: noun
tags: figuratively
gloss: The empty outward form of someone or something.
pos: noun
tags: figuratively
examples: The setback left him a mere shell; he was never the same again.
Mr. Thomas adds that, by the time it was scrapped, Kingsley was in very bad condition, little more than a shell in fact. In view of the rough usage to which the engine had been subjected, this is not surprising.
gloss: An emaciated person.
pos: noun
examples: He's lost so much weight from illness; he's a shell of his former self.
gloss: A person otherwise diminished.
pos: noun
tags: figuratively
examples: Since coming back from Vietnam, he's been a shell of his former self.
gloss: A psychological barrier to social interaction.
pos: noun
examples: Even after months of therapy he's still in his shell.
gloss: An operating system software user interface, whose primary purpose is to launch other programs and control their interactions; the user's command interpreter. Shell is a way to separate the internal complexity of the implementation of the command from the user. The internals can change while the user experience/interface remains the same.
pos: noun
examples: The name "Bash" is an acronym which stands for "Bourne-again shell", itself a pun on the name of the "Bourne shell", an earlier Unix shell designed by Stephen Bourne, and the Christian concept of being "born again".
gloss: A legal entity that has no operations.
pos: noun
examples: A shell corporation was formed to acquire the old factory.
gloss: A concave rough cast-iron tool in which a convex lens is ground to shape.
pos: noun
gloss: A gouge bit or shell bit.
pos: noun
gloss: The onset and coda of a syllable.
pos: noun
gloss: A person's ear.
pos: noun
tags: UK
slang
examples: Can I have a quick word in your shell?
gloss: One or more school grades within secondary education, at certain public schools.
pos: noun
tags: UK
examples: Chinese (Mandarin) is taught at Westminster from the Lower Shell as an optional subject.
gloss: In formal debating, a set of proposed rules to be followed, with set penalties for violating them.
pos: noun
examples: a theory shell
a topicality shell
gloss: To remove the outer covering or shell of something.
pos: verb
gloss: To bombard, to fire projectiles at, especially with artillery.
pos: verb
examples: The guns shelled the enemy trenches.
There wasn’t even a shed there, and she was shelling the bush.
gloss: To disburse or give up money, to pay. (Often used with out).
pos: verb
tags: informal
gloss: To fall off, as a shell, crust, etc.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
gloss: To cast the shell, or exterior covering; to fall out of the pod or husk.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
examples: Nuts shell in falling.
Wheat or rye shells in reaping.
gloss: To switch to a shell or command line.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
examples: Automenu is a good program to try, and offers a fair amount of protection - but, unfortunately, it's one of those systems that allow users to shell to DOS.
gloss: To form shallow, irregular cracks (in a coating).
pos: verb
gloss: To form a shelling.
pos: verb
gloss: To drop (the ball).
pos: verb
tags: slang
transitive
examples: He shelled it, and dislocated his finger in the process.
Derived words: acorn-shell
admiral shell
aeroshell
ark shell
backshell
back shell
bag of shell
bandshell
blind shell
boat shell
bodyshell
body shell
bombshell
breast shell
bubble shell
Camino de Santiago shell
Camino pilgrim shell
camper shell
carpet shell
carrier shell
chicken shell
clamshell
clean shell
clubshell
cockleshell
coconut shell
come out of one’s shell
cone shell
crabshell
date shell
dead-in-shell
deshell
dove shell
Dyson shell
ear shell
eggshell
electron shell
enshell
file shell
fountain shell
go into one's shell
half shell
hardshell
hard-shell clam
harp shell
headshell
helmet shell
inshell
intershell
jingle shell
kidneyshell
lamp shell
land shell
lentil shell
margin shell
mask shell
mason shell
microshell
mitre shell
multishell
music shell
Musselshell
nanoshell
needle shell
nonshell
nutshell
obtuse horn shell
olive shell
otter shell
oystershell
pansy shell
papershell
patty shell
pearl shell
pen shell
pilgrim shell
pilgrim's shell
porcelain shell
porphyry shell
pulley shell
razor shell
reverse shell
rice shell
rosary shell
sandwich shell
Santiago shell
scallop shell
scimitar shell
scorpion shell
seashell
segment shell
shellac
shellback
shellbag
shellbark
shell bean
shell bed
shellburst
shell casing
shellcode
shell company
shell corporation
shellcracker
shellfire
shellfish
shellfisherman
shellflower
shellful
shell game
shell ginger
shell gravel
Shell Haven
shellheap
shell hunger
shell ice
shellie
shell jacket
shell-lac
Shell Lake
shell-less
shellless
shell-like
shell lime
shell marl
shell moulding
shell nail syndrome
shell-pad
shellpad
shell parakeet
shell parrot
shell pink
shellproof
Shell Ridge
shell road
shell sac
shell sand
shell script
shell shock
shell shoveling
shell star
shell steak
shell suit
shelltoe
shelltoed
shelltoes
shellular
shellwork
shellworker
shellworking
shelly
Shelly Beach
shotshell
shuck
slitshell
slit-shell
snailshell
soft-shell
softshell
soft-shell crab
soft-shell turtle
spider shell
spur-shell
star shell
subshell
sunset shell
supershell
tongue-shell
tooth shell
topshell
top shell
tortoise shell bracket
tortoiseshell
tortoise shell
tracer shell
trough-shell
trough shell
trumpet shell
tulip shell
turban shell
turnip shell
turtleshell
tusk shell
undershell
unshell
valence shell
waxy screw shell
web shell
wedge shell
wing-shell
worm-shell
worm shell
like shelling peas
shellable
sheller
shell out
Translations:
lang: Southern Altai
word: кабык
roman: kabïk
lang: Arabic
word: قِشْر
roman: qišr
lang: Arabic
word: قِشْرَة
roman: qišra
lang: Armenian
word: կճեպ
roman: kčep
lang: Asturian
word: cascu
lang: Basque
word: oskol
lang: Belarusian
word: шкарлупі́на
roman: škarlupína
lang: Belarusian
word: лушпі́на
roman: lušpína
lang: Belarusian
word: шалупа́йка
roman: šalupájka
lang: Belarusian
word: шкару́па
roman: škarúpa
lang: Bulgarian
word: черу́пка
roman: čerúpka
lang: Catalan
word: closca
lang: Catalan
word: clovella
lang: Chinese Mandarin
word: 蛋殼 /蛋壳
roman: dànké, dànke
lang: Chinese Mandarin
word: 殼 /壳
roman: ké
lang: Cornish
word: plisken
lang: Czech
word: skořápka
lang: Danish
word: æggeskal
lang: Dutch
word: schaal
lang: Dutch
word: eierschaal
lang: Egyptian
word: i-n:r:039
roman: jnr
lang: Esperanto
word: ŝelo
lang: Estonian
word: munakoor
lang: Finnish
word: munankuori
lang: Finnish
word: kuori
lang: French
word: coquille
lang: Galician
word: casca
lang: Georgian
word: ნაჭუჭი
roman: nač̣uč̣i
lang: German
word: Schale
lang: German
word: Eierschale
lang: Greek
word: κέλυφος
roman: kélyfos
lang: Ancient Greek
word: κέλυφος
roman: kéluphos
lang: Hebrew
word: קליפה
roman: klipá
lang: Hindi
word: खोल
roman: khol
lang: Hindi
word: खोखा
roman: khokhā
lang: Hungarian
word: héj
lang: Hungarian
word: tojáshéj
lang: Indonesian
word: cangkang
lang: Italian
word: guscio
lang: Japanese
word: 殻
roman: kara
lang: Japanese
word: 卵殻
roman: rankaku
lang: Khmer
word: សំបក
roman: sɑmbɑɑk
lang: Khmer
word: កណាណូ
roman: kɑɑnaanou
lang: Korean
word: 껍질
roman: kkeopjil
lang: Korean
word: 난각
roman: nan'gak
lang: Korean
word: 란각
roman: ran'gak
lang: Ladino
word: kashkara
lang: Latin
word: putāmen
lang: Luxembourgish
word: Schuel
lang: Macedonian
word: черупка
roman: čerupka
lang: Malay
word: kulit
lang: Malay
word: cangkerang
lang: Malay
word: cengkerang
lang: Malayalam
word: തോട്
roman: tōṭŭ
lang: Manx
word: bleayst
lang: Māori
word: pāpapa
lang: Norman
word: cruque
lang: Norwegian Bokmål
word: eggeskall
lang: Norwegian Bokmål
word: skall
lang: Persian
word: پوسته
roman: puste
lang: Polish
word: skorupka
lang: Portuguese
word: casca
lang: Romanian
word: coajă
lang: Russian
word: скорлупа́
roman: skorlupá
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: ljuska
lang: Slovak
word: škrupina
lang: Slovene
word: lupina
lang: Somali
word: qolof
lang: Spanish
word: cáscara
lang: Swedish
word: äggskal
lang: Swedish
word: skal
lang: Thai
word: เปลือก
roman: bplʉ̀ʉak
lang: Turkish
word: kabuk
lang: Ukrainian
word: шкаралу́па
roman: škaralúpa
lang: Ukrainian
word: шкаралу́пина
roman: škaralúpyna
lang: Ukrainian
word: лушпи́на
roman: lušpýna
lang: Ukrainian
word: лушпа́йка
roman: lušpájka
lang: Vietnamese
word: vỏ
lang: Vietnamese
word: vỏ trứng
lang: Welsh
word: masgl
lang: Welsh
word: plisg