annulet

[ an-yuh-lit ]

/ ˈæn yə lɪt /

noun

Also called bandelet, bandlet, square and rabbet. Architecture. an encircling band, molding, or fillet, as on the shaft of a column.

Entomology. a ring, usually colored, around or on the surface of an organ.

Heraldry. a ring, represented as a voided roundel, used especially as the cadence mark of a fifth son.

Nearby words

annular ligament, annular ring, annular scotoma, annulate, annulation, annulet, annulment, annuloplasty, annulorrhaphy, annulose, annulus

Origin of annulet

1565–75; < Latin annul(us) ring (see annulus) + -et; replacing earlier anlet < Anglo-French anelet, diminutive of Old French anel ring < Latin ānellus ring

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for annulet

Said of any charge when its central area is removed—thus, an Annulet is a false roundle.
The Handbook to English Heraldry|Charles Boutell
Cotgrave gives: 'Touret, the annulet, or little ring whereby a hawk's lune is fastened unto the jesses.'
Chaucer's Works, Volume 5 (of 7) -- Notes to the Canterbury Tales|Geoffrey Chaucer
The Annulet seems to have been taken from the ring armour, much in use about the period of the Norman Conquest.
The Curiosities of Heraldry|Mark Antony Lower
The first crosslet is charged with an annulet, probably as a mark of cadency.
A Complete Guide to Heraldry|Arthur Charles Fox-Davies

British Dictionary definitions for annulet

annulet

/ (ˈænjʊlɪt) /

noun

architect a moulding in the form of a ring, as at the top of a column adjoining the capital

heraldry a ring-shaped device on a shield; hollow roundel

a little ring

Word Origin for annulet

C16: from Latin ānulus ring + -et

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