usually herbivorous land turtles having clawed elephant-like limbs; worldwide in arid area except Australia and Antarctica
"The giant tortoises roaming the dry Galápagos islands have thick, columnar legs adapted for their harsh, arid habitat."
Any of various land-dwelling reptiles, of the family Testudinidae (chiefly Canada, US) or the order Testudines (chiefly Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, India), whose body is enclosed in a shell (carapace plus plastron). The animal can withdraw its head and four legs partially into the shell, providing some protection from predators.
"The slow-moving tortoise pulled its head back into its hard shell just as the hawk swooped down."
The word "tortoise" comes from Medieval Latin tortuca, which may derive from Ancient Greek for a creature associated with the underworld. Alternatively, it could originate from the Latin word tortus, meaning "twisted."