turtle

noun

1. (Canada, US)Any land, marine, or semi-aquatic reptile of the order Testudines, characterised by a protective shell enclosing its body. See also tortoise.

   “A unique anti-aphrodisiac was the heart of a turtle carried in a wolf's skin. It prevented a person from ever being tempted amorously.”

2. (Australia, British, specifically)A marine reptile of that order.
3. (historical)An Ancient Roman attack method, where the shields held by the soldiers hide them, not only left, right, front and back, but also from above.
4. A type of robot having a domed case (and so resembling the reptile), used in education, especially for making line drawings by means of a computer program.
5. An on-screen cursor that serves the same function as a turtle for drawing.

   “Depending on which version of Logo you have, the turtle may look like an actual animal with a head and four legs or — as in Berkeley Logo — it may be represented as a triangle.”

6. (historical)The curved plate in which the form is held in a type-revolving cylinder press.
7. A small element towards the end of a list of items to be bubble sorted, and thus tending to take a long time to be swapped into its correct position. Compare rabbit.
8. A breakdancing move consisting of a float during which the dancer's weight shifts from one hand to the other, producing rotation or a circular "walk".
9. A low stand for a lamp etc.

   “Alan Bermingham, Location Lighting for Television Using an appropriate turtle allows the full range of pan and tilt adjustments on the luminaire and avoids possible heat damage to floor coverings.”

10. A candy with pecans, caramel, and chocolate, often shaped like a turtle.
11. (archaic)A turtle dove.

    “The same he tooke, and with a riband new, / In which his Ladies colours were, did bind / About the turtles neck […].”

    “As the turtle, every day has been a black day with her since her husband died, and what should we unruly members make here?”

12. A member of the Ancient and Honorable Order of Turtles, a drinking club.

verb

1. (intransitive)To flip over onto the back or top; to turn upside down.

   “Were speeding when car turtled […] Auto crashed into curb and turtled.”

2. (intransitive)To move along slowly.

   “We turtled along in Manitoba, back into the heart of the prairies.”

3. (intransitive)To turn and swim upside down.

   “I turtled my board beneath it, flipped upright, and started paddling again.”

4. (intransitive)To hunt turtles, especially in the water.

   “Of these, 80 turtled (65%), 26 hunted and turtled (20%), and 18 hunted (15%).”

5. To build up a large defense force and strike only occasionally, rather than going for an offensive strategy.
6. (euphemistic, idiomatic, slang)To struggle to hold back an involuntary bowel movement.

name

1. A river in Saskatchewan, Canada.
2. An extinct town in Dent County, Missouri, United States.
3. A town in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States.
4. A surname, thought to be derived from the turtle dove.