Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

shell company

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.36 in modern English

Syllables: shel-l -com-pa-ny
IPA

24

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

5

Syllables

11

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A company that engages in no substantive business activities, but instead exists as a vehicle for legal or financial transactions, typically to shield another party from liability or other issues.

Example Sentences

"It was a shell company and, the SEC alleges, never had researchers, research plans or any scientific resources."
"This luxury-loving and profligate shell company is registered at a betting shop on the Caledonian Road, an unlovely thoroughfare in North London on which you'd be more likely to find amphetamines than a top-notch lawyer."

Inflected Forms

shell companies (plural)

Phrases

shell game ghost company

Frequently Paired Words

shell game ghost company

Synonyms

shell corporation letterbox company mailbox company front company

Questions

What does shell company mean?: A company that engages in no substantive business activities, but instead exists as a vehicle for legal or financial transactions, typically to shield another party from liability or other issues.

How to pronounce shell company

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