Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A mussel-shell of the stone-boring genus Lithodomus (or Lithophagus), of the family Mytilidæ, as the Mediterranean L. dactylus, abounding in the subaqueous columns of the temple of Serapis at Pozzuoli, near Naples: so called from its shape or appearance. See
Lithodomus .
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word date-shell.
Examples
-
The one called the date-shell can, assisted by its liquid acid, pierce the hardest stone with its cylindrical gimlet.
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.