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noun
1.
a hard outer covering of an animal, as the hard case of a mollusk, or either half of the case of a bivalve mollusk.
2.
any of various objects resembling such a covering, as in shape or in being more or less concave or hollow.
3.
the material constituting any of various coverings of this kind.
4.
the hard exterior of an egg.
5.
the usually hard, outer covering of a seed, fruit, or the like, as the hard outside portion of a nut, the pod of peas, etc.
6.
a hard, protecting or enclosing case or cover.
7.
an attitude or manner of reserve that usually conceals one’s emotions, thoughts, etc.:
One could not penetrate his shell.
8.
a hollow projectile for a cannon, mortar, etc., filled with an explosive charge designed to explode during flight, upon impact, or after penetration.
9.
a metallic cartridge used in small arms and small artillery pieces.
10.
a metal or paper cartridge, as for use in a shotgun.
11.
a cartridgelike pyrotechnic device that explodes in the air.
12.
shells, Italian Cookery. small pieces of pasta having the shape of a shell.
13.
the lower pastry crust of a pie, tart, or the like, baked before the filling is added.
14.
Computers. a program providing a menu-driven or graphical user interface designed to simplify use of the operating system, as in loading application programs.
15.
Physics.

any of up to seven energy levels on which an electron may exist within an atom, the energies of the electrons on the same level being equal and on different levels being unequal.
a group of nucleons of approximately the same energy.

16.
a light, long, narrow racing boat, for rowing by one or more persons.
17.
the outer part of a finished garment that has a lining, especially a detachable lining.
18.
a woman’s sleeveless blouse or sweater, especially one meant for wear under a suit jacket.
19.
Nautical. the plating, planking, or the like, covering the ribs and forming the exterior hull of a vessel.
20.
tortoiseshell (def 1).
21.
a mollusk.
22.
Engineering. the curved solid forming a dome or vault.
23.
an arena or stadium covered by a domed or arched roof.
24.
a saucer-shaped arena or stadium.
25.
the framework, external structure, or walls and roof of a building:
After the fire, only the shell of the school was left.
26.
a small glass for beer.
27.
the metal, pressure-resistant outer casing of a fire-tube boiler.
28.
Metallurgy.

a scab on the surface of an ingot.
a length of unfinished tubing.
a pierced forging.
a hollow object made by deep drawing.

verb (used with object)
29.
to take out of the shell, pod, etc.; remove the shell of.
30.
to separate (Indian corn, grain, etc.) from the ear, cob, or husk.
31.
to fire shells or explosive projectiles into, upon, or among; bombard.
verb (used without object)
32.
to fall or come out of the shell, husk, etc.
33.
to come away or fall off, as a shell or outer coat.
34.
to gather sea shells:
We spent the whole morning shelling while the tide was out.
Verb phrases
35.
shell out, Informal. to hand over (money); contribute; pay.
1.
contraction of she will.
noun
1.
the protective calcareous or membranous outer layer of an egg, esp a bird’s egg
2.
the hard outer covering of many molluscs that is secreted by the mantle
3.
any other hard outer layer, such as the exoskeleton of many arthropods
4.
the hard outer layer of some fruits, esp of nuts
5.
any hard outer case
6.
a hollow artillery projectile filled with explosive primed to explode either during flight, on impact, or after penetration Compare ball1 (sense 7a)
7.
a small-arms cartridge comprising a hollow casing inside which is the primer, charge, and bullet
8.
a pyrotechnic cartridge designed to explode in the air
9.
(rowing) a very light narrow racing boat
10.
the external structure of a building, esp one that is unfinished or one that has been gutted by fire
11.
the basic structural case of something, such as a machine, vehicle, etc
12.
(physics)

a class of electron orbits in an atom in which the electrons have the same principal quantum number and orbital angular momentum quantum number and differences in their energy are small compared with differences in energy between shells
an analogous energy state of nucleons in certain theories (shell models) of the structure of the atomic nucleus

13.
the pastry case of a pie, flan, etc
14.
a thin slab of concrete or a skeletal framework made of wood or metal that forms a shell-like roof
15.
(Brit) (in some schools) a class or form
16.
come out of one’s shell, to become less shy and reserved
17.
bring out of one’s shell, to help to become less shy and reserved
verb
18.
to divest or be divested of a shell, husk, pod, etc
19.
to separate or be separated from an ear, husk, cob, etc
20.
(transitive) to bombard with artillery shells
contraction
1.
she will or she shall
shell
(shěl)

The usually hard outer covering of certain animals, such as mollusks, insects, and turtles.

The hard outer covering of a bird’s egg.

The hard outer covering of a seed, nut, or fruit.

A set of electron orbitals that have nearly the same energy. Electrons in outer shells have greater energy than those in shells closer to the nucleus. Elements in the Periodic Table range from the lightest elements with electrons normally occupying one shell (hydrogen and helium) to the heaviest, with electrons in seven shells (radium and uranium, for instance). See more at atomic spectrum, orbital, subshell. See Note at metal.

Any of the stable states of other particles or collections of particles (such as the nucleons in an atomic nucleus) at a given energy or small range of energies.

A set of electron orbitals that have nearly the same energy. Electrons in outer shells have greater energy than those in shells closer to the nucleus. Elements in the Periodic Table range from the lightest elements with electrons normally occupying one shell (hydrogen and helium) to the heaviest, with electrons in seven shells (radium and uranium, for instance). See more at atomic spectrum, orbital, subshell. See Note at metal.

Any of the stable states of other particles or collections of particles (such as the nucleons in an atomic nucleus) at a given energy or small range of energies.

shelf
language
An early system on the Datatron 200 series.
[Listed in CACM 2(5):16 (May 1959)].
[Jargon File]
(1995-05-11)

1. (Originally from Multics, widely propagated via Unix) The command interpreter used to pass commands to an operating system; so called because it is the part of the operating system that interfaces with the outside world.
The commonest Unix shells are the c shell (csh) and the Bourne shell (sh).
2. (Or “wrapper”) Any interface program that mediates access to a special resource or server for convenience, efficiency, or security reasons; for this meaning, the usage is usually “a shell around” whatever.
[Jargon File]
(1995-05-11)
In addition to the idiom beginning with shell