abatis
Americannoun
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an obstacle or barricade of trees with bent or sharpened branches directed toward an enemy.
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a barbed wire entanglement used as an obstacle or barricade against an enemy.
noun
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a rampart of felled trees bound together placed with their branches outwards
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a barbed-wire entanglement before a position
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of abatis
1760–70; < French; Old French abateis < Vulgar Latin *abatteticius, derivative of Old French abattre ( see 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
At this moment a great explosion shook the abatis, and a hoarse voice was heard crying out, "Ah, my God!"
From The Invasion of France in 1814 by Chatrian, Alexandre
"The impetuosity of the attack carried all before it, and within nine minutes from the time the abatis was passed the work was gained."
From Homes of American Statesmen With Anecdotical, Personal, and Descriptive Sketches by Various
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.
The besiegers crossed the canal; pushed a double sap to the inside of the abatis, and prepared to make an assault by sea and land.
From The Student's Life of Washington; Condensed from the Larger Work of Washington Irving For Young Persons and for the Use of Schools by Irving, Washington
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.
