# turtles

Pronunciation: say "TUR-tuhlz" US /ˈtɝtl̩z/, UK /ˈtɜːtl̩z/

## Noun

1. Plural of turtle. — plural of turtle
   - Simple: Plural of turtle. Use this form when you mean more than one turtle.
   - _Sea turtles return to the same beach where they hatched to lay their eggs._
   - _The pond was home to dozens of turtles by midsummer._
3. A slang term for gloves, used chiefly in British English. *(slang, UK)*
   - Simple: A slang word for gloves, used in parts of Britain.
   - _She kept a spare pair of turtles in her coat pocket for the walk home._
   - _The market trader blew on his hands, wishing he'd brought a thicker pair of turtles._

## Verb

2. Third-person singular simple present of turtle. — third-person singular simple present indicative of turtle
   - Simple: The form of turtle used in the present with he, she, it, or a singular noun such as the dog or water.
   - _If the dinghy turtles in heavy surf, the crew has to right it from underneath._
   - _In every online match, my brother turtles behind his walls until his army is too big to stop._

## Origin

In the sense of gloves, this is rhyming slang from "turtle doves."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/turtles (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).