battlement
English
editEtymology
editFrom Middle English batilment, from Old French bataillement, earlier bastillement (“fortification”), from bastillier (“to fortify, to equip with battlements”), from bastille (“fortress”) (see bastion).
Pronunciation
editNoun
editbattlement (plural battlements)
- In fortification: an indented parapet, formed by a series of rising members called cops or merlons, separated by openings called crenelles or embrasures, the soldier sheltering himself behind the merlon while he fires through the embrasure or through a loophole in the battlement.
- Any high wall for defense.
- (poetic) The towering roof of heaven.
Synonyms
edit- (sense, indented parapet) crenellation
Derived terms
editTranslations
editindented parapet formed by a series of rising members
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References
edit- “battlement”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.