shellback
an old sailor.
a person who has crossed the equator by boat.
Origin of shellback
1Words Nearby shellback
Other definitions for shell back (2 of 2)
an underside of a spoon bowl ornamented with a shell motif.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use shellback in a sentence
Swedish producers Max Martin (“I Kissed a Girl”) and shellback collaborate on some of her feistiest tunes.
Taylor Swift Dishes on Her New Album ‘Red,’ Dating, Heartbreak, and ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ | Ramin Setoodeh | October 22, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTHow could he give his life, with all its fair possibilities, all its high hopes, for this worn-out old shellback?
The Moving Finger | Mary GauntAt seven o'clock we dined together in the saloon—the skipper, an old shellback whom Walworth had picked up, sitting down with us.
The Beautiful White Devil | Guy BoothbyThe word was no sooner spoken than our shellback again excelled himself.
A Labrador Doctor | Wilfred Thomason Grenfell“The old shellback has our skipper,” whispered Captain Folsom to the boys.
The Radio Boys with the Revenue Guards | Gerald Breckenridge
Skinner, you don't suppose Matt's like every other shellback of a skipper?
Cappy Ricks Retires | Peter B. Kyne
British Dictionary definitions for shellback
/ (ˈʃɛlˌbæk) /
informal a sailor who has crossed the equator: Compare polliwog (def. 2)
an experienced or old sailor
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
Browse