The Collaborative International Dictionary
Turtling \Tur"tling\, n.
The act, practice, or art of catching turtles.
--Marryat.
Wiktionary
Etymology 1 n. 1 The hunting of turtles (''the reptiles''). 2 (context nautical English) turn turtle. 3 (context figuratively English) Any slow progression or build-up. 4 (context computer games English) A defensive strategy of avoiding conflict, usually in a fixed position. vb. (present participle of turtle English) Etymology 2
n. A baby turtle.
Wikipedia
Turtling is a gameplay strategy that emphasizes heavy defense, with little or no offense. Ostensibly, turtling minimizes risk to the turtling player while baiting opponents to take risks in trying to overcome the defenses. In practice, however, games are often designed to punish turtling through various game mechanics. Consequently, while turtling strategies are usually simple enough for novices to learn and are effective as such, they are easily defeated by experienced players who understand the game's methods to counter turtling.
As a metaphor, turtling refers to the defensive posture of a turtle, which retracts its limbs into its hardened shell for protection against predators. A player who concentrates on defense is said to behave like a turtle, reluctant to leave the safety of its shell for fear of suffering a lethal attack.
Turtling may refer to:
- Turtling (sailing), a sailing term to describe the inverting of a dinghy
- Turtling (hunting), the hunting of turtles
- Turtling (gameplay), a game term to describe a defensive strategy
Turtling is the hunting of turtles.
Turtling has been a part of human culture since as far back as 5000 B.C., where sea turtles such as the Hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) were eaten as delicacies in countries such as China. While consumption and hunting of turtles is less common than it was in the time of our ancestors, this practice is still a part of communities throughout the globe, whether done legally or illegally.
In dinghy sailing, a boat is said to be turtling or to turn turtle when the boat is fully inverted with the mast pointing down to the lake bottom or seabed. The name stems from the appearance of the upside-down boat, similar to the carapace, that is the top shell of a sea turtle. The term can be applied to any vessel; turning turtle is less frequent but more dangerous on ships than on smaller boats. Relative to monohulls, it is more hazardous on multihulls, because of their inherent stability in an inverted position. Measures can be taken to prevent a capsize (where the boat is knocked over but not yet inverted) from becoming a turtle (with bottom up).
Usage examples of "turtling".
She would have liked to point out to it in terms of passionate reproach that if he had only kept on turtling instead of parking provocatively in the exact middle of a dirt road she, Lorna Bland, sometimes called Blondie because of the inevitable alliteration, would not now be married to a long-legged, grunting maniac, capable of seeing life only through the lens of a camera.