testaceous

[ te-stey-shuhs ]

adjective

1. of, relating to, or derived from shells.
2. having a test or shell-like covering.
3. of a brick-red, brownish-red, or brownish-yellow color.

testaceous

/ tɛˈsteɪʃəs /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or possessing a test or testa
2. of the reddish-brown colour of terra cotta

Word History and Origins

Origin of testaceous¹

1640–50; < Latin testāceus shell-covered, equivalent to test ( a ) ( test ² ) + -āceus -aceous

Word History and Origins

Origin of testaceous¹

C17: from Latin testācens, from testa

Example Sentences

Leptura rubra of Linn, with red elytra, is the female of his L. testacea, in which they are testaceous.

From Project Gutenberg

Thus, in the order Coleoptera, the elytra of the male of Rhagium meridianum F. are testaceous, and those of the female black.

From Project Gutenberg

And therefore such as have no distinction of sex, engender not at all, as Aristotle conceives of Eels, and testaceous animals.

From Project Gutenberg

The Limax, or common garden slug, which has a testaceous shield beneath its mantle, is an instance of this.

From Project Gutenberg

A genus consisting of small testaceous appendages fixed on the posterior extremity of a species of slug.

From Project Gutenberg