Adjacent Words

Parapet definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PAR'APET, n. [L. pectus.] Literally, a wall or rampart to the breast or breast high; but in practice,a wall, rampart or elevation of earth for covering soldiers from an enemy's shot.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a low wall along the edge of a roof or balcony
2: fortification consisting of a low wall [syn: parapet, breastwork]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Italian parapetto, from parare to shield (from Latin, to prepare) + petto chest, from Latin pectus — more at pare, pectoral Date: 1590 1. a wall, rampart, or elevation of earth or stone to protect soldiers 2. a low wall or railing to protect the edge of a platform, roof, or bridge — called also parapet wall • parapeted adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 a low wall at the edge of a roof, balcony, etc., or along the sides of a bridge. 2 a defence of earth or stone to conceal and protect troops. Derivatives: parapeted adj. Etymology: F parapet or It. parapetto breast-high wall (as PARA-(2), petto breast f. L pectus)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Parapet Par"a*pet, n. [F., fr. It. parapetto, fr. parare to ward off, guard (L. parare to prepare, provide) + petto the breast, L. pectus. See Parry, and Pectoral.] 1. (Arch.) A low wall, especially one serving to protect the edge of a platform, roof, bridge, or the like. 2. (Fort.) A wall, rampart, or elevation of earth, for covering soldiers from an enemy's fire; a breastwork. See Illust. of Casemate.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(parapets) 1. A parapet is a low wall along the edge of something high such as a bridge or roof. N-COUNT 2. If you say that someone puts their head above the parapet, you mean they take a risk. If you say they keep their head below the parapet, you mean they avoid taking a risk. (BRIT) PHRASE: V and head inflect

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. (Fort.) Breastwork (on a rampart). 2. Breast wall (as on a bridge).

Moby Thesaurus

abatis, advanced work, arch dam, backstop, balistraria, bamboo curtain, bank, banquette, bar, barbed-wire entanglement, barbican, barrage, barricade, barrier, bartizan, bastion, battlement, bear-trap dam, beaver dam, boom, breakwater, breastwork, brick wall, buffer, bulkhead, bulwark, casemate, cheval-de-frise, circumvallation, cofferdam, contravallation, counterscarp, curtain, dam, defense, demibastion, dike, ditch, drawbridge, earthwork, embankment, enclosure, entanglement, escarp, escarpment, fence, fieldwork, fortalice, fortification, gate, glacis, gravity dam, groin, hydraulic-fill dam, iron curtain, jam, jetty, leaping weir, levee, logjam, loophole, lunette, machicolation, mantelet, merlon, milldam, moat, mole, mound, outwork, palisade, parados, portcullis, postern gate, rampart, ravelin, redan, redoubt, roadblock, rock-fill dam, sally port, scarp, sconce, seawall, shutter dam, stockade, stone wall, tackling, tenaille, vallation, vallum, wall, weir, wicket dam, work