paper nautilus
noun
any dibranchiate cephalopod of the genus Argonauta, the female of which has a delicate, white shell.
Origin of paper nautilus
First recorded in 1825–35
Words nearby paper nautilus
paper knife,
paper match,
paper mill worker's disease,
paper money,
paper mulberry,
paper nautilus,
paper over,
paper profit,
paper tape,
paper tiger,
paper trail
Example sentences from the Web for paper nautilus
The argonaut, or paper-nautilus, must be carefully distinguished from the pearly-nautilus or nautilus proper (Nautilus Pompilius).
The paper-nautilus (Argonauta argo) belongs to a different family of the same class, and has a simple, delicate, boat-like shell.
The Sailor's Word-Book |William Henry Smyth
British Dictionary definitions for paper nautilus
paper nautilus
noun
any cephalopod mollusc of the genus Argonauta, esp A. argo, of warm and tropical seas, having a papery external spiral shell: order Octopoda (octopods)
Also called: argonaut Compare pearly nautilus