nutshell

noun

nut·​shell ˈnət-ˌshel 

1

: the hard external covering in which the kernel of a nut is enclosed

2

: something of small size, amount, or scope

see also:

in a nutshell

Examples of nutshell in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Left-wing sports media in a nutshell. —Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 14 June 2026

The idea, in a nutshell, is to first find the group using a mixture of satellites, drones, radar aircraft, ships, submarines, signals intelligence, etc. —Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 13 June 2026

In a nutshell, every player from Europe’s biggest five leagues (England’s Premier League, Spain’s La Liga, Germany’s Bundesliga, Italy’s Serie A and France’s Ligue 1) is entered into a statistical model. —Thom Harris, New York Times, 10 June 2026

In a nutshell, a player is offside if any part of their body is closer to the goal than both the ball and the second-to-last defender, when the ball is passed to them. —Jonathan Thompson, Travel + Leisure, 10 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing nutshell

• in a nutshell

Rhymes for nutshell

• barbell
• bedwell
• befell
• bluebell
• bombshell
• bridewell
• capelle
• cartel
• carvel
• clamshell
• cogswell
• compel

Kids Definition

nutshell

noun

nut·​shell ˈnət-ˌshel 

: the shell of a nut