shell English · revision 5587

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 725|origins=gem-pro *skaljō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ʃel/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|shelle]], [[inh|ang|sciell]] (Anglian scell, earlier scel),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) from [[gem-pro|*skaljō|t=piece cut off, shell, scale]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) also the source of Middle Dutch schelle “pod, rind”, Old Norse skel “seashell” and Gothic skalja “tile”.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) The shared notion is a covering that splits off, from [[ine-pro|*skel-|t=to cut]].^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) It is related to [[scale]].^(Hoad 1986)^(Cresswell 2021)^(NODE 1998)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The hard outer covering of a shellfish or similar animal: about 725 in the OED.^(OED 1989) An eggshell is from before 900.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A coating or layer is from late Old English.^(Etymonline) The outer layer of a nut is from the mid-14th century,^(Etymonline) and a hollow object from the 16th century.^(Hoad 1986) The idea of a mere exterior, an empty thing, is from the 1650s.^(Etymonline) As an explosive projectile it is from the 1640s, first of hand grenades, from the metal case that held the powder and shot.^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) ''Out of one's shell'' is from the 1550s and ''go into one's shell'', to withdraw, from the early 19th century.^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) A hollow framework is from 1791 and a band shell from 1938.^(Etymonline) The verb, to remove from the shell, is from the 1560s;^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) to bombard with shells is from 1856, and ''shell out'', to pay, is slang from 1801, from the image of shelling nuts.^(Etymonline) ''Shell shock'' is from 1915, in the First World War,^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) and the ''shell game'', a swindle, from 1890.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 725 – a shellfish's covering.^(OED 1989)

+ * before 900 – an eggshell.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1640s – an explosive projectile.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1801 – ''shell out''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1856 – to bombard.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1915 – ''shell shock''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The hard outer covering of an [[egg]], a nut, or an animal such as a [[snail]], crab or [[tortoise]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # The outer framework or walls of a building or other structure.^(AHD)

+ # An explosive [[artillery]] [[projectile]], or a cartridge.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A reserved manner that hides a person's feelings: ''come out of one's shell''.^(Cresswell 2021)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To remove nuts, peas and the like from their shells.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To fire explosive shells at a place.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(with out, informal)'' To pay out money.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[sheller]]

+ * [[shell-less]]

+ * [[shell-like]]

+ * [[shell out]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[scale]]

+ * [[shellfish]]

+ * [[shale]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}