shell
shell — noun
1. the hard natural outer layer that protects an egg, nut, seed, or an animal such
the hard natural outer layer that protects an egg, nut, seed, or an animal such as a turtle, crab, or snail
Liam cracked the egg shell and let the yolk drop into the bowl.
countable: a single egg shell
The turtle pulled its head inside its shell when the dog came near.
Macadamia nuts have such a hard shell that shops often sell them already cracked open.
uncountable: shell as a material type
Nia collected pretty seashells along the shore during low tide.
Zola cracked the tough walnut shell with a nutcracker for the salad.
- crack a shell
- hard shell
- remove the shell
- inside a shell
Usage Note
Countable when referring to individual items (an eggshell, a snail shell); uncountable when referring to the material in general ('the shell of a nut is hard').
Common Mistakes
2. the outer walls or frame of a building, vehicle, or other large structure, espec
the outer walls or frame of a building, vehicle, or other large structure, especially when the inside parts are missing, destroyed, or not yet completed
After the fire, only the shell of the school building remained standing.
shell of [a building]: empty outer structure after destruction
The construction crew finished the concrete shell before winter arrived.
Defne bought an old house that was just a shell and rebuilt everything inside.
The car body is a lightweight metal shell that offers little protection.
metal shell: outer frame of a vehicle
- shell of a building
- empty shell
- outer shell
- concrete shell
Usage Note
Subject is often a building or vehicle that has been damaged, abandoned, or is under construction. Frequently used with 'just a shell' or 'only a shell' to emphasize emptiness.
3. a metal container packed with explosive material that a large gun shoots toward
a metal container packed with explosive material that a large gun shoots toward a target, where it detonates on impact
A shell exploded near the hospital, forcing everyone to take cover.
shell + explode: describes detonation of artillery
The old cannon fired a shell that landed over a kilometre away.
Soldiers took shelter in a basement while shells rained down on the town.
Tariq studied the remains of an unexploded shell for his military history class.
- fire a shell
- exploding shell
- artillery shell
- shell landed
- projectile
more general; refers to any object fired from a weapon
- round
a single unit of ammunition, including but not limited to shells
Common Mistakes
4. a long, very narrow, lightweight boat designed for racing, in which a team of pe
a long, very narrow, lightweight boat designed for racing, in which a team of people sit in a line and pull oars
The university rowing team practised in their new shell every morning.
Eight rowers climbed carefully into the shell so it would not tip over.
shell as a racing rowing boat
Min's shell crossed the finish line just ahead of the Oxford crew.
A narrow racing shell is easy to tip if the rowers lose their balance.
- racing shell
- rowing shell
- eight-person shell
5. a business that exists only on official documents, with no real offices, employe
a business that exists only on official documents, with no real offices, employees, or operations, often used to hide money, avoid taxes, or carry out illegal activities
The police discovered that the money went through a shell company in Panama.
shell company: a fake business for hiding money
Gabriela registered a shell company to move funds between overseas accounts.
Dozens of shell companies were registered in the Cayman Islands last year.
The journalists traced the payment to a shell company with no real address.
- set up a shell company
- shell company in
- through a shell company
- front company
a legitimate-looking business used to conceal illegal activity
- paper company
emphasizes that the company exists only on paper
Usage Note
Frequently appears in news stories about financial crime and tax avoidance. Often followed by 'in [country/city]' to indicate where it was registered.
6. a small edible container made of pastry, chocolate, or other food material, hold
a small edible container made of pastry, chocolate, or other food material, holding either a sweet or a salty filling inside
For dessert, the chef filled chocolate shells with fresh raspberry cream.
chocolate shells: edible containers made of chocolate
The bakery sold tiny pastry shells stuffed with cheese and spinach.
Asher baked pastry shells and filled them with custard for the party.
Felix made twenty tart shells the night before the bake sale.
- pastry shell
- chocolate shell
- tart shell
- filled shell
7. the outer behaviour or attitude that a person shows to others in order to hide t
the outer behaviour or attitude that a person shows to others in order to hide their true feelings, especially when they are shy, hurt, or vulnerable
Under his tough shell, Sahil is actually very kind and caring.
tough shell: a defensive outer personality
Allison built a shell around herself after her closest friend moved away.
Months of encouragement from his teacher helped Niran come out of his shell in class.
come out of one's shell: become more confident and sociable
The shy girl hid behind a shell of silence during her first week at camp.
Afraid to show emotion, the boy retreated into his shell when asked how he felt.
retreat into one's shell: withdraw socially when feeling vulnerable
- out of one's shell
- come out of one's shell
- into one's shell
- tough shell
- protective shell
- openness
willingness to share true feelings
Usage Note
Common in fixed expressions: 'come out of your shell' (become more outgoing) and 'retreat into your shell' (become withdrawn). Often refers to a protective response to emotional pain.
go into one's shell
idiomto become quieter and less willing to talk to people, often because of embarrassment, shyness, or emotional hurt
After being laughed at in class, Linh went into her shell and stopped raising her hand.
When strangers visit, the little boy goes into his shell and hides behind his mother.
to become more confident, sociable, and willing to join in conversations or activities
Élise used to be very shy, but she came out of her shell after joining the drama club.
The summer camp helped the quiet children come out of their shells and make new friends.
To stop being shy and start interacting more confidently with others.
After joining the drama club, Maya came out of her shell.
Did you see how Diego came out of his shell at the party?
To become quieter and avoid social interaction, often due to feeling uncomfortable.
When criticized, Brian retreated into his shell for days.
Why does Sara go into her shell whenever strangers visit?
shell — verb
1. to remove the hard outer layer from nuts, peas, eggs, or similar foods before co
to remove the hard outer layer from nuts, peas, eggs, or similar foods before cooking or eating them
The children sat on the porch and shelled peanuts for the family meal.
shell peanuts: remove the outer covering from peanuts
Defne spent an hour shelling hard-boiled eggs for the picnic salad.
For the holiday baking, Amani bought shelled walnuts instead of spending hours cracking them open.
passive: shelled walnuts — walnuts with shells already removed
Nia shelled the peas and dropped them straight into the pot of boiling water.
- shell peanuts
- shell walnuts
- shell hard-boiled eggs
- shelled shrimp
- shelled pistachios
Grammar Patterns
shell + noun phrase
Usage Note
Common in recipes and food preparation contexts. The object is typically nuts, seeds, eggs, or legumes. 'Shelled' as an adjective (shelled peanuts, shelled shrimp) means the covering has already been removed.
Common Mistakes
2. to attack a place or person by firing explosive shells from a large gun
to attack a place or person by firing explosive shells from a large gun
The army shelled the enemy positions all through the night.
shell [target]: transitive, direct attack
Witnesses reported that battleships shelled the port from offshore.
The fishing village was shelled repeatedly during the three-week siege.
passive: was shelled — the village received the attack
Tariq watched black smoke rise where the artillery had shelled the bridge.
- shell a town
- shell enemy positions
- shelled by artillery
- shell the coast
Grammar Patterns
shell + noun phrase
shell at + noun phrase
Usage Note
Frequently used in past tense or passive voice in news reports ('the town was shelled'). The agent is usually an army, artillery unit, or warship, not an individual person.
Common Mistakes
3. in baseball, to score many runs against a pitcher because the batters keep hitti
in baseball, to score many runs against a pitcher because the batters keep hitting the ball hard, forcing the pitcher to be taken out of the game
The young pitcher got shelled in the third inning and had to be replaced.
get shelled: passive verb describing the pitcher's experience
Our team shelled the opposing pitcher for eight runs in the first two innings.
The team's best pitcher was shelled last night and looked very frustrated.
Fans went quiet as their star pitcher got shelled by the visiting team.
- get shelled
- shell the pitcher
- shelled for runs
- pummel
general sports term for defeating badly, not baseball-specific
Grammar Patterns
get shelled
be shelled
Usage Note
The pitcher is the subject when passive ('the pitcher was shelled'); the batting team is the subject when active ('they shelled the pitcher').
Common Mistakes
shell out
phrasal verbto pay an amount of money, especially when it is large or unwillingly given
We had to shell out over two hundred dollars for the car repair.
Liam did not want to shell out so much money for a concert ticket.
Word family
- shelledadjectiveB2
- shell-lessadjectiveC1
- shellfishnounA2
- shellingnounC1
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
All four words refer to an outer layer that protects something. Shell is the most common learner word, used for eggs, nuts, turtles, and mollusks. Covering is much broader — any layer that covers something, from a thin cloth to a thick coat, qualifies. Carapace is a technical zoological term for the upper shell of a turtle, crab, or similar creature; learners at C2 level might encounter it in biology texts, but it sounds unnatural in everyday talk about cooking or pets. Crust refers specifically to a hard, brittle outer layer, most often of bread or the Earth's surface. For example, you crack a walnut shell but cut through a bread crust, and a scientist studies a turtle's carapace while a child collects pretty seashells on the beach — the right word depends on what is being covered and how hard the layer is.
Common collocations
Nouns
- egg shell
- nut shell
- sea shell
- turtle shell
- artillery shell
- racing shell
- pastry shell
Adverbs
Phrases
- shell of its former self
- come out of one's shell
- retreat into one's shell
Prepositions
- inside a shell
- out of one's shell
- shell of a building
Etymology
The English word 'shell' comes from Old English 'scell' (or 'scealu'), meaning a hard outer covering that naturally separates from the softer part inside. It is related to Old Norse 'skel' (shell) and Proto-Germanic '*skalō' (to split, separate), reflecting the idea of something that peels off or divides. The sense of an artillery projectile dates from the 1500s, referring to the metal 'shell' that held gunpowder. The figurative use for a person's protective emotional barrier appeared in the early 1800s.