a hard outer covering of an animal, as the hard case of a mollusk, or either half of the case of a bivalve mollusk.
any of various objects resembling such a covering, as in shape or in being more or less concave or hollow.
the material constituting any of various coverings of this kind.
the hard exterior of an egg.
the usually hard, outer covering of a seed, fruit, or the like, as the hard outside portion of a nut, the pod of peas, etc.
a hard, protecting or enclosing case or cover.
an attitude or manner of reserve that usually conceals one's emotions, thoughts, etc..
One could not penetrate his shell.
a hollow projectile for a cannon, mortar, etc., filled with an explosive charge designed to explode during flight, upon impact, or after penetration.
a metallic cartridge used in small arms and small artillery pieces.
a metal or paper cartridge, as for use in a shotgun.
a cartridgelike pyrotechnic device that explodes in the air.
Italian Cooking. shells, small pieces of pasta having the shape of a shell.
the lower pastry crust of a pie, tart, or the like, baked before the filling is added.
Computers. a program providing a menu-driven or graphical user interface designed to simplify use of the operating system, as in loading application programs.
Physics.
any of up to seven energy levels on which an electron may exist within an atom, the energies of the electrons on the same level being equal and on different levels being unequal.
a group of nucleons of approximately the same energy.
a light, long, narrow racing boat, for rowing by one or more persons.
the outer part of a finished garment that has a lining, especially a detachable lining.
a woman's sleeveless blouse or sweater, especially one meant for wear under a suit jacket.
Nautical. the plating, planking, or the like, covering the ribs and forming the exterior hull of a vessel.
a mollusk.
Engineering. the curved solid forming a dome or vault.
an arena or stadium covered by a domed or arched roof.
a saucer-shaped arena or stadium.
the framework, external structure, or walls and roof of a building.
After the fire, only the shell of the school was left.
a small glass for beer.
the metal, pressure-resistant outer casing of a fire-tube boiler.
Metallurgy.
a scab on the surface of an ingot.
a length of unfinished tubing.
a pierced forging.
a hollow object made by deep drawing.
to take out of the shell, pod, etc.; remove the shell of.
to separate (Indian corn, grain, etc.) from the ear, cob, or husk.
to fire shells or explosive projectiles into, upon, or among; bombard.
to fall or come out of the shell, husk, etc.
to come away or fall off, as a shell or outer coat.
to gather sea shells.
We spent the whole morning shelling while the tide was out.
the protective calcareous or membranous outer layer of an egg, esp a bird's egg
the hard outer covering of many molluscs that is secreted by the mantle
any other hard outer layer, such as the exoskeleton of many arthropods
the hard outer layer of some fruits, esp of nuts
any hard outer case
a hollow artillery projectile filled with explosive primed to explode either during flight, on impact, or after penetration Compare ball 1
a small-arms cartridge comprising a hollow casing inside which is the primer, charge, and bullet
a pyrotechnic cartridge designed to explode in the air
rowing a very light narrow racing boat
the external structure of a building, esp one that is unfinished or one that has been gutted by fire
the basic structural case of something, such as a machine, vehicle, etc
physics
a class of electron orbits in an atom in which the electrons have the same principal quantum number and orbital angular momentum quantum number and differences in their energy are small compared with differences in energy between shells
an analogous energy state of nucleons in certain theories ( shell models ) of the structure of the atomic nucleus
the pastry case of a pie, flan, etc
a thin slab of concrete or a skeletal framework made of wood or metal that forms a shell-like roof
(in some schools) a class or form
to become less shy and reserved
to help to become less shy and reserved
to divest or be divested of a shell, husk, pod, etc
to separate or be separated from an ear, husk, cob, etc
(tr) to bombard with artillery shells
The usually hard outer covering of certain animals, such as mollusks, insects, and turtles.
The hard outer covering of a bird's egg.
The hard outer covering of a seed, nut, or fruit.
A set of electron orbitals that have nearly the same energy. Electrons in outer shells have greater energy than those in shells closer to the nucleus. Elements in the Periodic Table range from the lightest elements with electrons normally occupying one shell (hydrogen and helium) to the heaviest, with electrons in seven shells (radium and uranium, for instance).
Any of the stable states of other particles or collections of particles (such as the nucleons in an atomic nucleus) at a given energy or small range of energies.
See contraction.
before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English scell (north), sciell; cognate with Dutch schil peel, skin, rink, Old Norse skel shell, Gothic skalja tile; (v.) derivative of the noun; cf. shale
A hard surface that covers an animal is its shell. Sea urchins, turtles, and lobsters all have protective shells. The largest turtle shell is nearly 10 feet wide! Most shells are made of calcium carbonate, and they grow along with the animal. Bird embryos are nestled inside shells, and nuts have shells too. Other uses for shell come from the biological meaning. A rifle shell has a shell-like metal casing. An empty structure, with only walls, is the shell of a building. And to "come out of your shell," means to emerge, like a turtle, from your shyness.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
These two-in-one shorts layer a lightweight shell over a liner that’s constructed from cloud-shaped fibers which boost the surface area sweat can evaporate from.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
One key factor determining how much older adults will shell out for health care is the age at which they retire, according to Milliman.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
Finish them off with flaky sea salt, then store them in the freezer for 30 minutes or until the outer chocolate shell has hardened.
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
The newly designed white French loudspeakers suspended over the Bowl stage along with ground-level white cubes of super-effective subwoofers have clean, unobtrusive lines that well fit the shell.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026
Then she whistled her shell, two long, shrill notes that carried far out to the reef, where the sea lions were fishing.
From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr
Some responsibilities she’ll never give up: “The time to talk about our day, snuggle in bed, read books, that’s really special to me.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
She knows that the sun will always rise again, and that when she exits the Club of Love, she’ll have to face the unbearable truths that the light of a new day reveals.
From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026
If she finds a cafe or bakery along the way she likes the look of, she'll try their coffee or cake and make a video about it.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
What kind of support she’ll garner in London remains to be seen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
I worry when her knees bend and body dips, she’ll swallow too much water.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Walking along the railroad tracks, she watched Simon Rodia build the Watts Towers’ 17 spires from rebar, shells, tiles, mirrors, soda bottles and cement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
They lie in mud, shells, ice and rock - fragments of evidence from a time when the Atlantic appears to have changed with startling speed.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
It grabs onto the pasta beautifully, especially shapes like cavatappi, fusilli or shells, while still leaving room for olive oil, citrus, herbs and whatever vegetables happen to be in season.
From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026
Earlier superluminous supernovae had occasionally shown one or two bumps, often explained as shock waves colliding with shells of gas surrounding the dying star.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 6, 2026
The other pilot’s sharp thinking probably stopped the exploding German shells from hitting Zhenya’s plane.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
An investor who shelled out around $1,500 for Apple stock back in early 2001 is sitting on a position worth nearly $2.2 million today, including dividends.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
My parents wanted to save my life, and so they shelled out the cash, my father taking on side jobs to pay for it.
From MarketWatch ● May 27, 2026
And a few months later, in November of that year, £354.70 was shelled out on an assortment of Le Creuset espresso and cappuccino mugs in the space of just four days.
From BBC ● May 25, 2026
But for both Sun Peaks, which shelled out $180,000 for a larger blanket, and Bogus Basin, which spent $120,000, the investment has paid off.
From Slate ● Apr. 11, 2026
Churchill was on a torpedo boat that shelled the coast.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
Netflix has revealed just how big it is betting on artificial intelligence, shelling out more than half a billion dollars for one of the early AI movers in Hollywood.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
Despite the constant shelling, Odesa remains a prime holiday destination for Ukrainians.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
Investors are piling into the hardware providers supplying the AI build-out, rather than the megacap companies shelling out billions to execute it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
An NNA journalist had also reported drones flying over the Tyre area, while an AFP correspondent heard continuous artillery shelling in the southern town of Nabatieh.
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
This involved shelling the seeds in her mouth with skillful discretion.
From "Typical American" by Gish Jen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
