tortoise
[tawr-tuh s]
- a turtle, especially a terrestrial turtle.
- a very slow person or thing.
- testudo(def 1).
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Origin of tortoise
1350–1400; variant of earlier (15th-century) tortuse, tortose, tortuce, Middle English tortuca < Medieval Latin tortūca, for Late Latin tartarūcha (feminine adj.) of Tartarus (< Greek tartaroûcha), the tortoise being regarded as an infernal animal; Medieval Latin form influenced by Latin tortus crooked, twisted (see tort)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for tortoise
Contemporary Examples
Tortoise disqualified for technical reasons, first place awarded to Sputnik hare.
The tortoise Hollande, early on in his bid to become the Socialist nominee, had only two reporters on his beat.
Meanwhile, the 23-year-old Pattinson may be the tortoise to Lautner's hare.
She is married with two children, two dogs, a cat and a tortoise.
Historical Examples
I had, too, and I own it was absurd, a tortoise named Chrysagre.
My Double LifeSarah Bernhardt
The tortoise in the right road will beat a racer in the wrong.
Self-HelpSamuel Smiles
With these words he took his tortoise on his back and went off.
The Chinese Fairy BookVarious
Gone were the figs and almonds, the indigo, ivory, tortoise shells.
The HarborErnest Poole
Nolens Volens tries it by a process like "Achilles and the Tortoise."
A Tangled TaleLewis Carroll
tortoise
- any herbivorous terrestrial chelonian reptile of the family Testudinidae, of most warm regions, having a heavy dome-shaped shell and clawed limbsRelated adjectives: chelonian, testudinal
- water tortoise another name for terrapin
- a slow-moving person
- another word for testudo See also giant tortoise
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Word Origin
C15: probably from Old French tortue (influenced by Latin tortus twisted), from Medieval Latin tortūca, from Late Latin tartarūcha coming from Tartarus, from Greek tartaroukhos; referring to the belief that the tortoise originated in the underworld
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for tortoise
n.
1550s, altered (perhaps by influence of porpoise) from Middle English tortuse (late 15c.), tortuce (mid-15c.), tortuge (late 14c.), from Medieval Latin tortuca (mid-13c.), perhaps from Late Latin tartaruchus "of the underworld" (see turtle). Others propose a connection with Latin tortus "twisted," based on the shape of the feet. The classical Latin word was testudo, from testa "shell." First record of tortoise shell as a coloring pattern is from 1782.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper