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Shellfish and shells

abalone

noun

a shellfish that can be eaten as food. Its shell contains mother-of-pearl.

barnacle

noun

a sea creature that sticks firmly to rocks and to the bottoms of ships

bivalve

noun

a sea creature with a shell made of two parts joined together

clam

noun

a small shellfish that can be eaten

cockle

noun

a small European shellfish

cockleshell

noun

the shell of a cockle

conch

noun

the large curved shell of a sea creature that is also called a conch

cowrie

noun

a shiny, coloured shell of a sea animal, used in the past as money in parts of Africa and Asia

crab

noun

a shellfish with ten legs and two large claws used for holding things. Crabs walk sideways.

crawfish

noun

a crayfish

crayfish

noun

a creature like a small lobster that lives in rivers and lakes and can be eaten

hermit crab

noun

a type of crab with a soft body that lives in the empty shells of other shellfish

krill

noun

extremely small shellfish, eaten by whales

langoustine

noun

a shellfish that is a type of small lobster

limpet

noun

a small sea animal that has a shell and sticks tightly to rocks

lobster

noun

a shellfish that has a long body, eight legs, and two large parts like arms called claws

mussel

noun

a small shellfish with a soft body inside a hard black or green shell, often cooked and eaten as food

oyster

noun

a type of shellfish that has a rough shell and is eaten as food, often raw. Some types of oyster contain pearls (=small white jewels).

periwinkle

noun

a small sea creature that lives in a shell and can be eaten. Periwinkles are often simply called winkles.

prawn

noun

a shellfish that can be eaten

scallop

noun

a shellfish with two shells that fit together

scampi

noun

large prawns

seashell

noun

the empty shell of a sea animal

sea urchin

noun

a small round animal that lives in the sea and has a hard shell with sharp points

shellfish

noun

sea creatures with a hard shell around them, for example crabs, mussels, and oysters

shrimp

noun

a small shellfish with a lot of legs

urchin

noun

a sea urchin

whelk

noun

a small shellfish that lives along the coast of the North Atlantic Ocean. It is sometimes eaten as food.

winkle

noun

a type of small shellfish that can be eaten as food

vocal fry

a speech habit in which a speaker lowers their voice at the end of a sentence

BuzzWord Article

Word of the Day Word of the Day

dray

a type of cart pulled by a horse and used in the past for carrying barrels of beer

Open Dictionary

conflict mineral

a mineral which is mined in a place where there is armed conflict, and sold to help pay for weapons

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