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testudo |
2 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Testudo \Tes*tu"do\, n.; pl {Testudines}. [L., from testa the shell of shellfish, or of testaceous animals.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) A genus of tortoises which formerly included a large number of diverse forms, but is now restricted to certain terrestrial species, such as the European land tortoise ({Testudo Gr[ae]ca}) and the gopher of the Southern United States. 2. (Rom. Antiq.) A cover or screen which a body of troops formed with their shields or targets, by holding them over their heads when standing close to each other This cover resembled the back of a tortoise, and served to shelter the men from darts, stones, and other missiles. A similar defense was sometimes formed of boards, and moved on wheels. 3. (Mus.) A kind of musical instrument. a species of lyre; -- so called in allusion to the lyre of Mercury, fabled to have been made of the shell of a tortoise. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: testudo n 1: a movable covering that provided protection from above; used by Roman troops when approaching the walls of a besieged fortification 2: type genus of the Testudinidae [syn: {Testudo}, {genus Testudo}]
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