1
: any of a family (Testudinidae) of terrestrial turtles
broadly
: turtle
2
: someone or something regarded as slow or laggard
Examples of tortoise in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The snake, tortoises, and tarantula were now being taken care of at the San Dimas Canyon Nature Center, rather than staying at the hotel.
—
Oren Peleg, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
An unlikely friendship between a cat and two tortoises has pulled on TikTok users' heartstrings.
—Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 16 Jan. 2025
So far the tortoise has been soundly beaten by SpaceX’s hare.
—Jeremy Bogaisky, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2025
Only a handful of animals, including two puppies, two tortoises, some rabbits and a pig survived.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for tortoise 
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Oren Peleg, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
An unlikely friendship between a cat and two tortoises has pulled on TikTok users' heartstrings.
—Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 16 Jan. 2025
So far the tortoise has been soundly beaten by SpaceX’s hare.
—Jeremy Bogaisky, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2025
Only a handful of animals, including two puppies, two tortoises, some rabbits and a pig survived.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for tortoise
Dictionary Entries Near tortoise
Cite this Entry
“Tortoise.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tortoise. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tortoise
noun
tor·toise
ˈtȯrt-əs 
: turtle entry 2
especially
: a land-dwelling turtle
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