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Definition of sea turtle
sea turtle
Plural:sea turtles
sea turtle Lexical Profile
CEFR
B1
Grade
3
Tier
2
Usage
Top 10k
• noun
1
A large marine reptile of the superfamily Chelonioidea, characterized by a streamlined, flattened shell, flippers adapted for swimming, and a life cycle spent predominantly in the ocean, though females return to sandy beaches to lay eggs.
Example
"Conservationists are working to protect the nesting grounds of the endangered green sea turtle along the tropical coastline."
Synonyms
View all synonyms for sea turtle• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
A compound of 'sea' (from Old English 'sæ') and 'turtle' (from French 'tortue', later influenced by the word 'turtle' meaning dove), specifically used to distinguish these ocean-dwelling reptiles from freshwater turtles and land-dwelling tortoises.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.
180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Sea turtle. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 14, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/sea turtle