Chellean

[ shel-ee-uhn ]

/ ˈʃɛl i ən /

Save This Word!

adjective

Abbevillian.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of Chellean

1890–95; <French chelléen, after Chelles, France, where Paleolithic tools were unearthed; see -an

Words nearby Chellean

chelicera, chelicerate, cheliferous, cheliform, cheliped, Chellean, chellup, Chełmno, Chelmsford, cheloid, chelone

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Chellean in a sentence

From the published figures, they seem to correspond to the earlier Acheulean or to the Chellean type.
Prehistoric Man|W. L. H. Duckworth
The Chellean implements, which precede those of Mousterian type, are commonly associated with a fauna of southern affinities.
Prehistoric Man|W. L. H. Duckworth
Chellean probably represents the earliest work in Europe of a pre-Neanderthal type like Piltdown man.
Ancient Man in Britain|Donald A. (Donald Alexander) Mackenzie
The pre-Chellean flints (also called Eoliths) were wrought by the pre-Neanderthals.
Ancient Man in Britain|Donald A. (Donald Alexander) Mackenzie

Since Chellean times all three rivers have silted up their channels.
Men of the Old Stone Age|Henry Fairfield Osborn

British Dictionary definitions for Chellean

Chellean

/ (ˈʃɛlɪən) /

noun, adjective archaeol

(no longer in technical usage) another word for Abbevillian

Word Origin for Chellean

C19: from French chelléen, from Chelles, France, where various items were found

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012