moon shell

American  

noun

1. any marine gastropod of the family Naticidae, having a rounded, short-spired, smooth shell.

2. the shell itself.

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Etymology

Origin of moon shell

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

As she picks up shell after shell during her seaside musings, Author Lindbergh seems to hear in them the murmur of delicate truths�the double-sunrise suggests the early stage of marriage; the oyster, with small shells clinging to its back, symbolizes the middle years of marriage, children, the home; the moon shell reminds her of the importance of solitude.

From Time Magazine Archive