Meanings
plural carapaces · alternative nonstandard carapax
- A hard protective covering of bone or chitin, especially one which covers the dorsal portion of an animal.
They were heading towards a waiting black car, polished as a beetle's carapace.
2026, Erin Hunter [pseudonym; The Erin Hunter Team: Cherith Baldry, Clarissa Hutton, Rosie Best, Michael Ford, Inbali Iserles], Renegades: Book One: The Magic Awakens, page 190 - figurativelyThat which protects.
This is all a massive failure of science to pierce the carapace of public ignorance.
2010 January 8, Simon Jenkins, “The proliferation of nuclear panic is politics at its most ghoulish”, in The Guardian, §: “Comment & Debate”, page 29, column 41 more example
So, little by little, youth loosens the hard carapace of confining custom their elders have built over the human heart.
1928, Edward A. Ross, World Drift, New York; London: The Century Co., page 12
Synonyms & antonyms
nounhard outer covering or case of certain organisms such as arthropods and turtles
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Spanishcarapacho
- Frenchcarapace
- Englishcarapace
Borrowed from French carapace (“tortoise shell”), from Spanish carapacho, of unknown origin, but likely from an extinct Ibero-Mediterranean substrate language. Compare Catalan carabassa, Ancient Greek κάραβος (kárabos, “beetle”), Latin scarabaeus (the source of scarab); also Spanish galápago (“kind of turtle”). Doublet of calipash.
More words from French, Spanish, substrate
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans rugdop, rugskild
- rugdophard protective covering
- rugskildhard protective covering
Bulgarian черу́пка, кору́ба
- черу́пка (čerúpka)hard protective covering
- кору́ба (korúba)hard protective covering
Catalan closca, clotxa
- closcahard protective covering
- clotxahard protective covering
Chinese Mandarin 甲殼 /甲壳
- 甲殼 /甲壳 (jiǎké, jiǎqiào)hard protective covering
Czech štít, krunýř
- štíthard protective covering
- krunýřhard protective covering
- karapaxhard protective covering
Dutch carapax, schild
- carapaxhard protective covering
- schildhard protective covering
Esperanto karapaco
- karapacohard protective covering
Finnish kilpi, selkäkilpi
- kilpihard protective covering
- selkäkilpihard protective covering
- panssarihard protective covering
French carapace
- carapacehard protective covering
German Carapax, Rückenschild
- Carapaxhard protective covering
- Rückenschildhard protective covering
- Rückenpanzerhard protective covering
- Schalehard protective covering
Greek κέλυφος, καύκαλο
- κέλυφος (kélyfos)hard protective covering
- καύκαλο (káfkalo)hard protective covering
Hawaiian una
- unahard protective covering
Icelandic skel, bakskjöldur
- skelhard protective covering
- bakskjöldurhard protective covering
Irish casóg
- casóghard protective covering
Italian carapace, esoscheletro
- carapacehard protective covering
- esoscheletrohard protective covering
Japanese 甲羅
- 甲羅 (kōra)hard protective covering
Korean 갑각
- 갑각 (gapgak)hard protective covering
Latin carapāx
- carapāxhard protective covering
Malay karapas کاراڤس, sisik
- karapas کاراڤسhard protective covering
- sisikhard protective covering
Polish karapaks
- karapakshard protective covering
Portuguese carapaça
- carapaçahard protective covering
Romanian carapace
- carapacehard protective covering
Russian карапа́кс, щито́к
- карапа́кс (karapáks)hard protective covering
- щито́к (ščitók)hard protective covering
- щит (ščit)hard protective covering
- па́нцирь (páncirʹ)hard protective covering
Spanish carapacho, caparazón
- carapachohard protective covering
- caparazónhard protective covering
Thai กระดอง
- กระดอง (grà-dɔɔng)hard protective covering
Turkish kabuk
- kabukhard protective covering
Welsh argragen
- argragenhard protective covering
Cite this entry
carapace. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/carapace
“carapace.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/carapace. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “carapace,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/carapace.
Source: carapace on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.