tortoiseshell

Everyday

1. Tortoiseshell is the hard, brown-and-yellow mottled shell material that comes from the hawksbill sea turtle (not from tortoises), once used for combs, glasses frames and jewellery; trading it is now banned to protect the turtles. tree →
2. Tortoiseshell also means a pattern or plastic copying that mottled brown and amber look: tortoiseshell glasses. tree →
3. A tortoiseshell is a cat with a coat patterned in black and orange (ginger) patches; almost all of them are female. tree →
4. A tortoiseshell is also a butterfly, the small tortoiseshell, with orange, black and yellow wings. tree →

In the lessons

In science and citizenship lessons it comes up with endangered animals and the CITES ban on trading hawksbill shell. In nature lessons the small tortoiseshell butterfly is a common British garden butterfly. In everyday life, "tortie" cats and tortoiseshell-style glasses. Phrases: "tortoiseshell cat", "tortoiseshell frames", "small tortoiseshell".

Examples

• My cat is a tortoiseshell with black and ginger patches. tree →
• Almost all tortoiseshell cats are female. tree →
• Dad's glasses have tortoiseshell frames, but they are plastic. tree →
• Real tortoiseshell came from hawksbill turtles, which are now endangered. tree →
• A small tortoiseshell butterfly landed on the buddleia. tree →
• The old hairbrush in the museum was made of tortoiseshell. tree →
• Selling real tortoiseshell is banned in most countries. tree →
• Next came the water-rats, dressed as pages, and lastly the frog herself, in a litter borne by eight toads, and made of tortoiseshell. tree →

Note

One word. Despite the name, it comes from sea turtles, not land tortoises. Informal name for the cat: "tortie". The cat being nearly always female is due to genes on the X chromosome.