From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishturtletur‧tle /ˈtɜːtl $ ˈtɜːrtl/ ●○○ noun [countable] 1 
HBAa reptile that lives mainly in water and has a soft body covered by a hard shell2 American English any reptile that has a hard shell covering its body, for example a tortoise3 → turn turtle
HBAa reptile that lives mainly in water and has a soft body covered by a hard shell2 American English any reptile that has a hard shell covering its body, for example a tortoise3 → turn turtleExamples from the Corpus
turtle• I had turtle soup followed by turtle steak.• The living turtles are placed on burning coals and heated until their top and bottom shells become malleable enough to rip off.• State officials also reported a dead sea turtle had washed ashore.• But will the majestic green sea turtle survive us?• Primo had won a green stuffed turtle by throwing three darts into a target shaped like a red apple.• When Primo walks out he tells her the turtles look fine.Origin turtle (1500-1600) French tortue ( → TORTOISE); influenced by turtledove 