Meanings
nounchicken shell (plural chicken shells)
plural chicken shells
- The shell of young oysters, harvested for pearls and for use in ornamental work.
Port Essington, one of the "likeliest" places, proved its reputation, and the fishers raised what is known as the best kind of "chicken shell" without any diving appliances whatever.
1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 274
Cite this entry
APA
chicken shell. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chicken%20shell
MLA
“chicken shell.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chicken%20shell. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “chicken shell,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chicken%20shell.
Source: chicken shell on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.