abri

American  

[uh-bree, a-bree] / əˈbri, aˈbri /

noun

• abris
  plural

1. a shelter, especially a dugout.

2. Archaeology. a rock shelter formed by the overhang of a cliff and often containing prehistoric occupation deposits.

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abri British  

/ æˈbriː /

noun

1. a shelter or place of refuge, esp in wartime

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• abris
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of abri

< French, Old French, noun derivative of abrier (now obsolete or dial.) to shelter, shield, screen < Late Latin aprīcāre to warm in the sun (hence, to shield from wind, cold, etc.), verbal derivative of Latin aprīcus sunny, warmed by the sunshine; Old French b for v perhaps < Old Provençal abriar, or by construal of a- as prefix

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

abri abris

Hind, a local resident, said the frequent water outages forced her and her family to rely solely on their reserves of abri - a corn-based drink usually consumed during Ramadan - to quench their thirst.

From BBC ● Apr. 20, 2023

Five months have passed since I last saw the inhabitants of this abri, the tenants of the "Ritz-Marmite."

From A Volunteer Poilu by Henry Beston

"To the first available abri," I cried at her, under the sky's reckless tumult.

From The Book of Susan A Novel by Lee Wilson Dodd

We passed through several gun pits and stopped in front of a huge abri built entirely above ground.

From "And they thought we wouldn't fight" by Floyd Gibbons

There must be trenches somewhere, near,"—she nodded,—"they'll have left some wire-netting in an abri.

From Home Fires in France by Dorothy Canfield

Elaborate abris, benches and tables woven of boughs about a cleared “Appelplatz,” and rifles, overcoats and other equipment spoke of the occupation of the same woods by the Germans not long before.

From Battery E in France 149th Field Artillery, Rainbow (42nd) Division by Frederic R. Kilner

After the seven weeks of close confinement in damp abris, the change to the life at the Merviller position was like a trip to a summer resort.

From Battery E in France 149th Field Artillery, Rainbow (42nd) Division by Frederic R. Kilner

And in like manner the primeval man would not exchange his abris for a structural dwelling unless constrained so to do.

From Castles and Cave Dwellings of Europe by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould

As soon as a lull in the firing permitted, we ran across the street to the abris.

From World's War Events Volume 3 Beginning with the departure of the first American destroyers for service abroad in April, 1917, and closing with the treaties of peace in 1919. by Allen L. (Allen Leon) Churchill

There was no hope of using it as a short cut to the abris, or shelter, on the other side, while to try to go around it was almost certain death.

From World's War Events Volume 3 Beginning with the departure of the first American destroyers for service abroad in April, 1917, and closing with the treaties of peace in 1919. by Allen L. (Allen Leon) Churchill

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