Meanings
plural cuttlebones
- Synonym of cuttlefish bone (“the calcareous, oval-shaped internal shell of a cuttlefish (order Sepiida), originally used in powdered form as an antacid and for absorbing moisture or polishing objects, and now chiefly as a dietary supplement for cage birds”).
Synonyms: sepiostaire, sepium, osselet, cuttlefish bone
Synonyms & antonyms
nounSynonym of cuttlefish bone (“the calcareous, oval-shaped internal shell of a cuttlefish (order Sepiida), originally used in powdered form as an antacid and for absorbing moisture or polishing objects, and now chiefly as a dietary supplement for cage birds”).
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰeyh₂-“to hit, strike; to cut, hew”
- Old Englishbān“bone”
- Proto-Indo-European*gew-“to bend, to curve; an arch; a vault”
- Old Englishcudele“cuttlefish”
- Middle Englishcotilbone
- Englishcuttlebone
From Middle English cotilbone [and other forms], from cotil, cutil, codel (“cuttlefish; cuttlebone”) (from Old English cudele (“cuttlefish”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gew- (“to bend, to curve; an arch; a vault”)) + bon (“bone”) (from Old English bān (“bone”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeyh₂- (“to hit, strike; to cut, hew”)). The English word is analysable as cuttle (“cuttlefish”) + bone.
More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-Indo-European
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
cuttlebone. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cuttlebone
“cuttlebone.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cuttlebone. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cuttlebone,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cuttlebone.
Source: cuttlebone on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.