abatis
Americannoun
plural
abatis, abatises-
an obstacle or barricade of trees with bent or sharpened branches directed toward an enemy.
-
a barbed wire entanglement used as an obstacle or barricade against an enemy.
noun
-
a rampart of felled trees bound together placed with their branches outwards
-
a barbed-wire entanglement before a position
Etymology
Origin of abatis
1760–70; < French; Old French abateis < Vulgar Latin *abatteticius, derivative of Old French abattre ( abate )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The defenses consisted of two lines of abatis and a line of earthworks manned by Brig.
From Washington Post • Sep. 17, 2021
Infantry was up most of the night felling trees and building an abatis on the other side of river.
From An Artilleryman's Diary by Jones, Jenkins Lloyd
His pioneers were to be equipped to destroy the enemy's abatis.
From The Boys of '61 or, Four Years of Fighting, Personal Observations with the Army and Navy by Coffin, Charles Carleton
They were now exactly opposite the Death Angle and only a few yards from the abatis.
From Vermont riflemen in the war for the union, 1861 to 1865 A history of Company F, First United States sharp shooters by Ripley, William Y. W.
Nevertheless, the old hunter, before returning to the abatis, wished to have his mind set quite at rest.
From The Invasion of France in 1814 by Chatrian, Alexandre
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.