tortile 
A hundred tome y Imtfe schot with linn, 
I'niltT hrs titrti/U trrr 
KMu Hood and Ike I'Mer (Child's llallads, V. 28). 
2. Specifically, in hut., roiled likr a rope : iis, 
a tortile awn. 
tortility(t6r-t.il'i-ti), n. [< tortile + -ity.] The 
state of being tortile or twisted. 
tortilla (tor-te'lya), . [Sp., dim. of tin-tu, :i 
tart : sen tm-t-, l/iii-.] A round cuke : speciti- 
cally, in Mexico, a large, round, thin cake pre- 
pared from maize. For this purpose It is first par- 
boiled to cleanse and soften the Kniin, then crushed into 
a paste on a Hat stone with a stone Implement not unlike 
a rolling-pin, then worked with the hands into a kind of 
thin imm-iiku, then liakt-d, tlrst on otic side and thru on 
the other, on a Mat smooth plate of iron or earthenware, 
this kiking brine <>rt of toasting curried just so far as 
not to brown the tortilla, which is then served up hot. 
tortill6 (tor-te-lya'), . [OF., pp. of tortillrr, 
twist, < It. /on/in n, pp. influx, twist: seetor<', 
and cf. tortil.'} In her. : (a) Same asnowed. (6) 
Same as wreathed. 
tortillon (F. pron. tor-te-lyon'), n. In ehar- 
riMil-ilrinritnj, a kind of paper stump, made of 
strips of paper rolled so as to form a point. 
F. Fowler, Charcoal Drawing, p. 12. 
tortipnt (tor'shon), n. An obsolete spelling of 
torsion. 
tortious (tdr'shus), a. [Formerly also torteous; 
avar. of tortuous 1 .} If. Wicked; wrong; base. 
Than the deull . . . came vnto man in Paradise, .v in- 
tlced him (oh, tvrteouge serpent !) to eat of the forbidden 
f i ii it r Stubbes, Auat. of Abuses (ed. Kurni valU I- 36. 
2. In law, having the character of a tort. 
It is as if a civil officer on land have process against one 
individual and through mistake arrest another ; this ar- 
rest is wholly tortious. 
Wooliey, Introd. to Inter. Law, t200. 
tortiously (tdr'shus-li), ailc. In law, by tort 
or injury ; injuriously. 
tortive (tor'tiv), a. [< L. tortivus, pressed or 
squeezed out, < torguere, pp. tortus, twist: see 
tort 1 .'] Twisted; wreathea. 
As knots, by the conflux of meeting sap, 
Infect the sound pine, and divert his grain 
Tortive and errant from his course of growth. 
Shale., T. and C. ( 1. S. 9. 
tortlet, An obsolete form of turtle 2 . 
tortness (tdrt'nes), n. The state of being tort 
or taut. See tort*. Bailey, 1727. 
tortoise (tor'tis or tor'tus), n. [Early mod. E. 
also tortoyse, tortesse; < ME. tortous, tortuce (< 
AF. * tortuce f ); ME. also tortu, < OF. tortue, tor- 
tugue, F. tortue = Pr. tortuga, tartuga = OSp. 
tortuga, tartuga, Sp. tortuga = Pg. tartaruga = 
Olt. tartuga, also tartaruga, tarteruga, tarteruc- 
ca, It. tartaruga (ML. tortuca, tartuga), a tor- 
toise, so named on account of its crooked feet, 
< L. tortus, twisted: see tortl, and cf. tortue, 
tortuous. The termination seems to be con- 
formed in E. to that of porpoise, and in Rom., 
vaguely, to that of L. testudo, tortoise (see tes- 
tudo). The word has undergone extraordinary 
variations of form, the latest being that which 
appears in tortle, now turtle: see turtle^.] 1. 
A turtle; any chelonian or testudinate ; a mem- 
ber of the order Chelonia or Testudinata (see the 
technical terms). It Is not known what species the 
name originally designated ; probably a land-tortoise of 
southern Europe, as Testudo yrteca. There is a tendency 
to distinguish terrestrial chelonlans from aquatic ones, 
the former as tortoises, the latter as turtles; yet tortoise- 
A Fresh-water Tortoise 
iHtarta). 
shell is fixed as the name of the commercial product of 
certain sea-turtles. (See box-tortoise, land-tortoise, terra- 
pin. turtle-, mud-turtle, sea-turtle'^.) Tortoises of some 
kind are found in most parts, and especially the warmer 
part*, of the world ; the species are numerous those of 
the land and of fresh waters much more so than the ma- 
rine forms. See also cuts under carapace, Chelonia, 
Chelonidse, Chelydidx, Cinixyinje, Cinostermim, Cistudo, 
plastron. Pyxis, Testudo, Testudinata, and terrapin. 
The brook itself abounding with Tortesses. 
Sandys, Travalles, p. 160. 
2. A movable roof formerly used to protect 
the soldiers who worked a battering-ram. Some- 
times it was formed by the soldiers holding their shields 
flat over their heads so as to overlap one another. See 
testudo. 
6395 
Heroes tall 
Itisloitginp pinnacle and parapet 
Upon the tortoise creeping to the wall. 
Tennyson, Fair Women. 
Alligator-tortoise. Hume as alligator terrapin. Ele- 
phant tortoise, the giant Textudo (InkMtaMi of the 
Galapagos, the largest living representative of the Tejttudi- 
*"inrtiinr. :il- r;tl!r<l Indian tvrtoisf and elephant 
terrapin. See cut under Trulndinata. Sculptured tor- 
toise. *i-v:irnliiiiir,-ii. Soft-ahelled or soft tortoises. 
See SHft-shrlled. Spotted tortoise, a roimnon I 
of the I" M i t ei I si ;itrg, Chelopus yuttatus. Wood-tortoise, 
Chelopus inx-iJptun nt the United State*. 
tortoise-beetle (tor'tis-be'tl), M. Aleaf-beetle 
of the family Cassidid/e : so called from the 
projecting elytra and protho- 
rax, which suggest the cara- 
pace of a tortoise. This resem- 
blance Is heightened In some cases 
by the coloration. Several species 
in the United States feed upon the 
sweet potato, as Deloyala clavata. 
See also cuts under Cassida, Coptocy- 
cla, Deloyala, and Phytonota. Spiny 
tortoise-beetles, the Uispida or 
//ur/n'/ue. See cut under Hispa. 
tortoise-flower (tdr'tis-flou'- 
er), H. A plant of the genus ~r/A tr,*r*ria). 
Chclone. 
tortoise-headed (tdr'tis-hed'ed). a. Having a 
head like or suggesting a tortoise's : specifically 
noting the ringed sea-serpent, Emydocephalu* 
IlllllllllltllX. 
tortoise-plant (tor'tis-plant), n. A South Af- 
rican plant, Testudinaria elephantipes, having a 
bulky, woody rootstock above the ground, the 
exterior of which by cracking gains the appear- 
ance of a tortoise-shell. This body, from having been 
used as food, is also called llottentot's-bread, and its appear- 
ance before it is full-grown suggests the name elepnant'* 
foot. See Textuilinaria. 
tortoise-rotifer (tdr'tis-ro'ti-fer), n. A wheel- 
animalcule of the family Brachionidse. 
tortoise-shell (tdr'tis-shel), n. and a. I, H. 1. 
The outer shell, or one of the scutes or scales, 
of certain sea-turtles or marine chelonians, es- 
pecially of Eretmochelyx imbricata, the hawk's- 
bill turtle, or caret, a species which inhabits 
tropical seas. These horny scales or plates, which cover 
the carapace In regular and symmetrical pieces, are a spe- 
cially thickened epidermis, of beautifully mottled and 
clouded coloration, and of quite different character from 
the underlying bones of the shell. Similar epidermal 
scutes cover most tortoises or turtles, but tortoise -shell is 
mainly restricted to such as have commercial value. These 
scales are extensively used in the manufacture of combs, 
snuff-boxes, etc., and in inlaying and other ornamental 
work. They become very plastic when heated, and when 
cold retain with sharpness any form they may be molded 
to In the heated state. Pieces can also be welded together 
under the pressure of hot irons. The quality of tortoise- 
shell depends mainly on the thickness and size of the scales, 
and in a smaller degree upon the clearness and brilliancy 
of the colors. The best tortoise-shell is that obtained in 
the Indian archipelago. It is now largely Imitated in horn, 
and in artificial compounds of much less cost. See cuts 
under carapace, Chelonia, Eretmochelys, and plastron. 
2. A tortoise-shell cat. See II., 2. 3. With a 
qualifying word, one of certain nymphalid but- 
terflies: so called from the tortoise-shell-like 
maculation. Aglais milberti is the nettle tor- 
toise-shell, and Vanessa urticte is the small 
tortoise-shell. 
II. a. 1. Made of tortoise-shell. 
They only flshed up the clerk's tortoise-shell spectacles. 
Barnaul, Ingoldsby Legends, II. 44. 
Pretty dears ! they used to carry ivory or tortoiseshell 
combs, curiously ornamented, with them, and comb their 
precious wigs In public. 
J. Athlon, Social Life in Reign of Queen Anne, I. 144. 
2. Mottled with black and yellow : as, a tortoise- 
shell cat or butterfly. The cat of this name is a mere 
color-variety of the domestic animal ; the insect is a vanes- 
soid, aa Vane**a urticx or V. polychlora. Tortoise-shell 
goose. See goose. Tortolse-sLell tiger. See tiger. 
Tortoise-shell ware, a fine pottery colored with oxld of 
copper and manganese so that the color penetrates the 
paste Itself, producing a certain resemblance to the mark- 
ing of tortoise-shell. 
tortoise-shelled (tdr'tis-sheld), a. Same as 
tortoise-shell. 
A tortoise-shelled butterfly. 5. Judd, Margaret, 11. 1. 
tortoise-wood (tdr'tis-wud), . A variety of 
zebra-wood. 
tortOUSt, n. A Middle English form of tortoise. 
tortozon (tor'to-zon), . [Sp.] A large Span- 
ish grape. 
Tortrices (tfir-tri'sez), n. pi. [NL. (Linnaeus, 
1758), pi. of Tortrix, q. v.J The Tortrieidte as 
a superfamily of heterocerous lepidopterous 
insects, including those Microlepidoptera whose 
larvffi are known as leaf-rollers. The group has 
not been generally adopted, most lepidopterists preferring 
to consider these moths as forming simply a family. 
tortricid (t6r'tri-sid), a. and n. I. a. 1. In en- 
torn., of or belonging to the lepidopterous family 
Tortricidte, or having their characters. 2. In 
tortuosity 
herpet., belonging in the ophidian family Tnrtri- 
cidte, or having their ehuraeters. 
II. 11. 1. In en torn., a moth of the family 
'rnrtririitii'. 2. Iii l/T/iit., a serpent of the fam- 
ily Ti>ftrifi<l;r; n i-ylinder-snake. 
Tortricidae(t<''i'-tiis'i-(le), .y/. [NL.( Stephens, 
l-j:o. < Tnrtrii ( Tortrie-) + -idee.] 1. Inottom., 
a large ami wide-spread family of Microlepi- 
tloptera ; the leaf-roller moths. They are stout- 
bodled, with wide oblong wingH. the < osl:il edge of the 
fore wings being often slnuntr : tin antenna ire simple, or 
tlncly ciliate and very rarrly jH'rtin.ilr ; the palpi are erect 
or porrect and sometimes two or three times as long as the 
head, which Is rough with erect scales : there Is a tuft of 
scales at the end of the abdomen ; and the legs are of me- 
dium length. Mont of the larva; are leaf-rollers, folding or 
rolling over a part of a leaf ami lining thr Interior with 
silk; others feed on buds, or live in seeds and fruits, or 
bore in the stems of plants. A common leaf-roller is Ca- 
cacia rotaceanaut the United States. Caarcia rHeyana is 
another leaf-roller on hickory and walnut. A seed-feeder Is 
Clydtmopteron teeoma, which burrows In the seed-pods of 
the trumpet-creeper ; the cosmopolitan codling-moth, Car- 
poeapta pinnoneua. Is an example of the fruit-borers ; the 
spruce bud-worm, Tortrit Jum\ferana, represents the bud- 
feeders ; and the pine twig Imrers of the genus Itetinui 
represent another habit. I'triliwa tcudderiana has been 
reared from galls In the stems of goldenrod. The prin- 
cipal subfamilies are Tortricinx, Conchylirut , itaAOrapho- 
lithinjr. Nearly 600 species are known In the United 
States, and 650 In Europe. See cuts under T'irtrix and 
Itaf-nller. 
2. In herpet., a family of cylinder-snakes, or 
tortricoid ophidians, typified by the genus Tor- 
trix, having rudimentary hind limbs and a very 
short conic tail. The genera are Tortrix (or 
Ilyttia) and ('ylindrophix. 
tortricine(t<"ir'tri-Kiii), . and n. Same as tor- 
trii'id. 
tortricoid (tdr'tri-koid), a. In herpel., having 
the characters of the Tortricoidea. 
Tortricoidea (tdr-tri-koi'de-S), n. pi. [NL., < 
Tortrix (Tortrie-) + -oidea.] The cylinder- 
snakes, or tortricoid ophidians, a suborder of 
Ojihidia containing small angiostomatous 
snakes, with or without anal spurs, with an ec- 
topterygoid bone, a coronoid, and a free hori- 
zontal maxillary. There are two families, Tor- 
tricidte and I'ropeltidee (or Khtnophidte). 
Tortril(t6r'triks),M. [NL. (Brongniart, 1800), 
fern, of L. tortor, a tormentor, a torturer, lit. 
' twister,' < torquere, pp. tortus. twist: 
1. In herpet,: (a) The typical genus of Tortri- 
cidx: same as Ilysia. T. scytale is the coral- 
snake of Demerara. (6) | '. <. ] A snake of this 
genus. 2. In entom.: (a) A genus of moths, 
A, Tortrix (Cararrta) infttmalana ; B, T. (Cacaetia) rileytma. 
typical of the family Tortricidte. Treituchke, 
1829. (6) [/. c.] Any moth of the family Tortri- 
cidse: as, the cherry -tree tortrir, Caeaecia cerasi- 
rorana. 
tortut, tortucet, . Middle English forms of 
tortoise. 
tortuet, a. [ME., < OF. tortu, twisted, crooked, 
< tordre, twist, bend: see tort 1 , and cf. tortu- 
ous 1 .'} Twisted; tortuous. 
lie bar a dragon that was not right grete, and the taile 
was a fadome and an half of lengthe tortue. 
Merlin (E. E. T. 8.), 11. 208. 
tortulous (tdr'tu-lus) ; a. [< L. tortula, dim. of 
tor In, a twist, something twisted.] Twisted ; in 
soo'l., moniliform ; resembling a string of beads. 
tortuose (tdr'tu-6s), a. [< L. tortuosus, wind- 
ing: see tortuous^."] In bot., irregularly bend- 
ing or turning in different directions Tortuose 
stem, a stem that Is bent In the manner of a flexuose stem, 
but leas angularly, as in Cakile marilima. 
tortuosity (t6r-tu-os'i-ti), ii.; pi. tortuosities 
(-tiz). [< F. tor~tuosit$= Pr. tortvositat = Sp. 
tortuosidad = Pg. tortuosidade = It. tortuosita, 
< L. tortuo.tita(t-)g, crookedness, < tortuotus, 
crooked: see tortuous^.] 1. The state or at- 
tribute of being tortuous; tortuousness; crook- 
edness. 
