oracle bones

American

plural noun

a group of inscribed animal bones and shells discovered in China and used originally in divination by the ancient Chinese, especially during the Shang dynasty.

Etymology

Origin of oracle bones

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.

"If implemented at scale, it could represent a milestone in the history of knowledge storage, akin to oracle bones, medieval parchment or the modern hard drive," they said.

From Barron's

They also found something less tangible: the beginnings of the Chinese writing system, in the form of the inscriptions on the animal scapula and tortoise shells known as oracle bones.

From Washington Post

Fu Hao was a consort of the king, Wu Ding, which is reflected in the show’s display of oracle bones.

From Washington Post

From Israel she jumps to India for the origins of the Vedas, and then over to China for the earliest scriptures, in the modern sense of written sacred texts: oracle bones.

From Washington Post

The most memorable books about China often have rich narratives, like Evan Osnos’s “Age of Ambition” or Peter Hessler’s “Oracle Bones.”

From New York Times

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