paper nautilus

American

noun

any dibranchiate cephalopod of the genus Argonauta, the female of which has a delicate, white shell.

paper nautilus British

noun

Also called: argonaut. any cephalopod mollusc of the genus Argonauta, esp A. argo, of warm and tropical seas, having a papery external spiral shell: order Octopoda (octopods) Compare pearly nautilus

"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

Etymology

Origin of paper nautilus

First recorded in 1825–35

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“It actually drives me nuts that people call them ‘paper nautilus,’” Dr. Vecchione said.

From New York Times

Some day I will show you a very beautiful shell, which I have in my cabinet; it is the shell of the paper nautilus, which is a very curious little fish.

From Project Gutenberg

I here also saw numbers of the paper nautilus floating on the calm surface of the water.

From Project Gutenberg

After a heavy storm the paper nautilus is sometimes found.

From Project Gutenberg

The varieties of the paper nautilus, or argonaut, are the most delicate and beautiful.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023