abri

[ uh-bree; French a-bree ]

noun,plural a·bris

[uh-breez; French a-bree]. /əˈbriz; French aˈbri/.

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

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

Words Nearby abri

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use abri in a sentence

It may be suggested that the mysterious bourjo was an abri of pere Jo or Jupiter.
Archaic England | Harold Bayley
Al fin abri los ojos, tendi una mirada, y un grito agudo se escap de sus labios.
Legends, Tales and Poems | Gustavo Adolfo Becquer
We passed through several gun pits and stopped in front of a huge abri built entirely above ground.
"And they thought we wouldn't fight" | Floyd Gibbons
In this abri you are safe from splinters and shrapnel but a direct hit would wipe us out.
"And they thought we wouldn't fight" | Floyd Gibbons
During one of these shelling spells, I reached cover of the road side abri and prepared to await clearer weather.
"And they thought we wouldn't fight" | Floyd Gibbons

British Dictionary definitions for abri

abri

/ (æˈbriː) /

noun

a shelter or place of refuge, esp in wartime

Origin of abri

French, from Latin apricum an open place

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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