: any of numerous chiefly marine small decapod crustaceans (especially families Diogenidae, Paguridae, and Parapaguridae) having soft asymmetrical abdomens and occupying the empty shells of gastropods
Illustration of hermit crab
Examples of hermit crab in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
So just like hermit crabs weighing shell safety against shock, humans are constantly running a cost–benefit analysis, judging whether the potential reward is worth the risk of pain.—Jonny Thomson, Big Think, 20 Aug. 2025 The analysis revealed that the bolder hermit crabs have more sensilla located on the claw’s surface.—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 3 July 2025 Changes to the film included getting rid of a scene in which Elio shows off a pink tank top made out of beach litter to a hermit crab, as well as removing picture frames from Elio’s bedroom wall that displayed a male crush.—Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2025 Land hermit crabs spend most of their lives on land and only rarely enter the water.—Soo Kim, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for hermit crab
Share