SHELL, noun

1. The hard and stony covering of certain fruits and of certain animals; as the shell of a nut; the shell of an oyster or lobster. the shells of animals are crustaceous or testaceous; crustaceous as that of the lobster, and testaceous as that of the oyster and clam.

2. The outer coat of an egg.

3. The outer part of a house unfinished. We say of a building that wants the interior timbers or finishing, that it is a mere shell.

4. An instrument of music, like testudo in Latin; the first lyre being make, it is said, by drawing strings over a tortoise shell

5. Oute ror superficial part; as the shell of religion.

6. A bomb.

Fossil shells, dug up from the earth.

SHELL, verb transitive

1. To strip or break off the shell; or to take out of the shell; as, to shell nuts or almonds.

2. To separate from the ear; as, to shell maiz.

SHELL, verb intransitive

1. To fall off, as a shell crust or exterior coat.

2. To cast the shell or exterior covering. Nuts shell in falling.

3. To be disengaged from the husk; as, wheat or rye shells in reaping.