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Glite Dictionary
🐚 A sea mollusk 📿 A shell ornament
dentalium

dentalium

9.9
A long tube-shaped shell used as a bead or as money in some cultures
  • noun
  • /dɛnˈteɪliəm/
translation icon : dentalio
  • Three sets of dentalium shell earrings dangled from her ears, set in holes an inch apart moving up her earlobes.

Examples

  • The Indigenous tribe used dentalium shells as currency in their trade with neighboring communities.

  • She wore a necklace made of dentalium beads that were intricately designed and beautifully polished.

  • At the Inland Ocean, Kayris could find dentalium money, maybe even get a fine wife.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • The museum displayed a collection of dentalium shells, showcasing their historical significance in Indigenous cultures.

Synonyms

tooth shell
vsdentalium
  • Specialized
9.9

A sea animal that has a long thin shell open at both ends and a foot for digging in sand

is valued and used as beads, ornaments, or traditional currency by Indigenous peoples

Surface Forms

dentalium singular
dentalia plural

Morphology

dentalium = dental (opaque) = dental + ium

Although the element 'dental' ('relating to teeth') is recognizable, the overall meaning 'the shell used as bead/currency' is a culturally specific taxonomic borrowing not inferable from 'dental' alone.

Etymology

Dentalium comes from the Latin root dent- meaning 'tooth', named for its long, tooth-like shell. Many Indigenous peoples used these shells as beads and money, so the 'tooth' shape helps explain why they became popular as ornaments and trade items.