Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “tortoise” come from?

Tortoise comes from Middle English tortuse, from Medieval Latin tortuca, of uncertain origin.

tortoise (English): Any of various land-dwelling reptiles, of the...

Definitions

  1. Any of various land-dwelling reptiles, of the...

Ancestry of “tortoise”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishtortuse—
2Medieval Latintortuca—

Words derived from “tortoise”

  • tortoiseshell
  • tortie
  • tortoiselike
  • untortoiselike
Every word from Medieval Latin tortuca →