mesail
English
editEtymology
editProbably from Old French muçaille (“concealment”), via French mézail; only attested in English since the 1800s (also spelled mezail, mursail). Alternatively, a connection to muzzle has also been suggested.
Pronunciation
editNoun
editmesail (plural mesails)
- (historical) The visor of a helmet, especially when made in two parts.
- 1968, Paul Martin, Armour and Weapons, Random House Business:
- The mesail face-defence, still consisting of the visor with its eye-slits and noseguard attached to the helmet by two pivots, could be raised or lowered at will, while the two shell-shaped cheek-pieces formed a bevor or chin [guard].
- 1992, Guy Francis Laking, A Record of European Armour and Arms Through Seven Centuries, page 42:
- The workmanship is sound, but not fine—portions of a visor and a mesail and a chin-piece of the period of Elizabeth have been added to it.
Alternative forms
editAnagrams
editTurkish
editNoun
editmesail
- nominative plural of mesele
- Synonym: meseleler
Categories:
- English terms derived from Old French
- English terms borrowed from French
- English terms derived from French
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- English terms with historical senses
- English terms with quotations
- en:Armor
- Turkish non-lemma forms
- Turkish noun forms