giant tortoise

American

noun

any of several large tortoises of the genus Geochelone, of the Galápagos Islands and islands near Madagascar: some are endangered.

giant tortoise British

noun

any of various very large tortoises of the genus Testudo, of the Galápagos, Seychelles, and certain other islands, weighing up to 225 kilograms (495 lbs.)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of giant tortoise

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Footage released by Ecuador's environment ministry shows park rangers releasing giant tortoises.

From Barron's

The GCT described the giant tortoises as "ecosystem engineers" and said they played an "outsized role in restoring degraded ecosystems" because of the way their activity shapes landscapes.

From BBC

More than 150 giant tortoises have been reintroduced to Floreana Island in Ecuador's famed Galapagos archipelago where they disappeared more than a century ago, the environment ministry said Friday.

From Barron's

Oh, and the two giant tortoises out back.

From Los Angeles Times

A pair of critically endangered giant tortoises aged about 100 years old have become first-time parents at Philadelphia Zoo.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023