/te stooh"doh, -styooh"-/ , n. , pl. testudines /te stoohd"n eez', -styoohd"-/ .
1. (among the ancient Romans) a movable shelter with a strong and usually fireproof arched roof, used for protection of soldiers in siege operations.
2. a shelter formed by overlapping oblong shields, held by soldiers above their heads.
[ 1350-1400 for earlier sense "tumor"; 1600-10 for def. 1; ME testudo tortoise, tortoise shell, siege engine; akin to TEST 2 ]