tortoiseshell

From tortoise +‎ shell.

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɔː(ɹ)təˌʃɛl/
• IPA^(key): /ˈtɔː(ɹ)təsˌʃɛl/

tortoiseshell (usually uncountable, plural tortoiseshells)

1. The horny, translucent, mottled covering of the carapace of the hawksbill turtle, used as a veneer etc.
2. The hawksbill turtle.
3. A domestic cat (or a rabbit, guinea-pig, etc.) whose fur has black, brown and yellow markings.
4. Any of several butterflies, mostly of the genera Nymphalis and Aglais that have similar markings.
   • 2015 November 24, Patrick Barkham, “Pesticide may be reason butterfly numbers are falling in UK, says study”, in The Guardian‎^[1], archived from the original on 5 March 2016:

     Other common farmland butterflies to have suffered steep declines include the small tortoiseshell (64%), the wall brown (37%) and the large skipper (35%).

• (cat etc.): tort (colloquial), tortie (colloquial)

tortoiseshell (not comparable)

1. Made of the covering of carapace of hawksbill turtle.
2. Having markings resembling covering of carapace of hawksbill turtle.
   • 2023 June 26, Lauren Caruso and Jillian Tracy, “The 22 best sunglasses for summer, according to style experts”, in CNN‎^[2], archived from the original on 14 April 2025:

     Speaking of round sunglasses, these lightweight polarized ones and come in two shades of tortoiseshell as well as black and bronze.

• tortoiseshell cat