shell

A2
Pronunciation
/ʃɛl/
Noun
29 definition(s)
1 Definition

A hard external covering of an animal.

2 Definition

The hard calcareous covering of a bird egg.

3 Definition

One of the outer layers of skin of an onion.

Example Sentences
  • The restaurant served caramelized onion shells.
4 Definition

The hard external covering of various plant seed forms.

5 Definition

The accreted mineral formed around a hollow geode.

6 Definition

The casing of a self-contained single-unit artillery projectile.

7 Definition

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 scattered at high velocity its contents and fragments. Formerly called a bomb.

8 Definition

The cartridge of a breechloading firearm; a load; a bullet; a round.

9 Definition

Any slight hollow structure; a framework, or exterior structure, regarded as not complete or filled in, as the shell of a house.

10 Definition

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.

11 Definition

A coarse or flimsy coffin; a thin interior coffin enclosed within a more substantial one.

12 Definition

A string instrument, as a lyre, whose acoustical chamber is formed like a shell.

Example Sentences
  • The first lyre may have been made by drawing strings over the underside of a tortoise shell.
13 Definition

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.

14 Definition

An engraved copper roller used in print works.

15 Definition

The thin coating of copper on an electrotype.

16 Definition

The watertight outer covering of the hull of a vessel, often made with planking or metal plating.

17 Definition

(rigging) The outer frame or case of a block within which the sheaves revolve.

18 Definition

A light boat whose frame is covered with thin wood, impermeable fabric, or water-proofed paper; a racing shell or dragon boat.

19 Definition

A set of atomic orbitals that have the same principal quantum number.

20 Definition

The outward form independent of what is inside.

21 Definition

The empty outward form of someone or something.

Example Sentences
  • The setback left him a mere shell; he was never the same again.
22 Definition

An emaciated person.

Example Sentences
  • He's lost so much weight from illness; he's a shell of his former self.
23 Definition

A psychological barrier to social interaction.

Example Sentences
  • Even after months of therapy he's still in his shell.
24 Definition

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.

Example Sentences
  • 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".
25 Definition

A legal entity that has no operations.

Example Sentences
  • A shell corporation was formed to acquire the old factory.
26 Definition

A concave rough cast-iron tool in which a convex lens is ground to shape.

27 Definition

A gouge bit or shell bit.

28 Definition

The onset and coda of a syllable.

29 Definition

A person's ear.

Synonyms
shell-like
Example Sentences
  • Can I have a quick word in your shell?
Verb
8 definition(s)
1 Definition

To remove the outer covering or shell of something.

2 Definition

To bombard, to fire projectiles at, especially with artillery.

3 Definition

To disburse or give up money, to pay. (Often used with out).

4 Definition

To fall off, as a shell, crust, etc.

5 Definition

To cast the shell, or exterior covering; to fall out of the pod or husk.

Example Sentences
  • Nuts shell in falling.
6 Definition

To switch to a shell or command line.

7 Definition

To form shallow, irregular cracks (in a coating).

8 Definition

To form a shelling.