apron

[ ey-pruh n ]

/ ˈeɪ prən /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR apron ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a garment covering part of the front of the body and tied at the waist, for protecting the wearer's clothing: a kitchen apron.

Anglican Church. a similar garment extending to the knees, worn by bishops, deans, and archdeans.

a metal plate or cover, usually vertical, for a machine, mechanism, artillery piece, etc., for protecting those who operate it.

a continuous conveyor belt for bulk materials, consisting of a chain of steel plates.

(in a lathe) a part of the carriage holding the clutches and gears moving the toolholder.

a paved or hard-packed area abutting an airfield's buildings and hangars, where planes are parked, loaded, or the like.

a broad paved area used for parking cars, as at the end of a driveway.

Civil Engineering.

any device for protecting a surface of earth, as a riverbank, from the action of moving water.
a platform to receive the water falling over a dam.

the part of a stage floor in front of the curtain line.

Furniture. skirt(def 6).

the outer border of a green of a golf course.

the part of the floor of a boxing ring that extends outside the ropes.

Also called skirt. a flat, broad piece of interior window trim immediately beneath the sill.

a strip of metal set into masonry and bent down to cover the upper edge of flashing; counterflashing.

the open part of a pier for loading and unloading vessels.

Nautical. (in a wooden vessel) a piece reinforcing the stem on the after side and leading down to the deadwood.

Geology. a deposit of gravel and sand at the base of a mountain or extending from the edges of a glacier.

the frill of long hairs on the throat and chest of certain long-haired dogs, as the collie.

a structure erected around another structure, as for reinforcement or decoration: a high fence surrounded by a wire apron buried in the ground.

verb (used with object)

to put an apron on; furnish with an apron.

to surround in the manner of an apron: The inner city is aproned by low-cost housing.

RELATED WORDS

smock, cover, shield, pinafore

Nearby words

april fool, april fools' day, april showers bring may flowers, apriorism, aproctia, apron, apron piece, apron stage, apron strings, apropos, apropos of

Origin of apron

1275–1325; 1925–30 for def 6; 1900–05 for def 8; Middle English napron (by later misconstruing a napron as an apron) < Middle French naperon, equivalent to nape tablecloth (< Latin mappa napkin; cf. map) + -ron diminutive suffix

Related forms

a·pron·like, adjectiveun·a·proned, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for apron

An office manager, he says, was wearing an apron with Santa on it.
A Field General in the War on Christmas|David Freedlander|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
While caring for patients, clinical staff is heavily robed with gown and apron; three pairs of gloves; a hood; and goggles.
Two Americans Have Now Been Diagnosed With Ebola in Record Outbreak|Kent Sepkowitz|July 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A housekeeper came out to buy some, wiping her hands on her apron.
Mexico City’s Magical Moment of Resurgence|Condé Nast Traveler|February 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A Chinese mountaineer held a green raincoat over his waist like an apron, covering his nakedness.
Death on Killer Mountain|Amanda Padoan|July 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Democrats' didn't get the allegiance of women by hectoring them, by saying take off that apron, GOP housewives, and join us.
Los Republicanos|Michael Tomasky|November 8, 2012|DAILY BEAST
"Well, I can't tell through your apron," said Ellen, smiling.
The Wide, Wide World|Susan Warner
An apron or half-apron skirt should be worn, for safetys sake.
Riding and Driving for Women|Belle Beach
Cap and apron, bib-collar and cuffs, were laid out on Gwynneth's bed, and these she found herself expected to don then and there.
Peccavi|E. W. Hornung
I never looked at her but I thought so; and her cuffs and apron merely accentuated the delusion.
Police!!!|Robert W. Chambers
Eliza red-eyed now from distress, stood there, dabbing her cheeks with a corner of her apron.
The Strange Case of Mortimer Fenley|Louis Tracy

British Dictionary definitions for apron

apron

/ (ˈeɪprən) /

noun

a protective or sometimes decorative or ceremonial garment worn over the front of the body and tied around the waist

the part of a stage extending in front of the curtain line; forestage

a hard-surfaced area in front of or around an aircraft hangar, terminal building, etc, upon which aircraft can stand

a continuous conveyor belt composed usually of slats linked together

a protective plate screening the operator of a machine, artillery piece, etc

a ground covering of concrete or other material used to protect the underlying earth from water erosion

a panel or board between a window and a skirting in a room

geology a sheet of sand, gravel, etc, deposited at the front of a moraine

golf the part of the fairway leading onto the green

machinery the housing for the lead screw gears of a lathe

another name for skirt (def. 3)

tied to someone's apron strings dependent on or dominated by someone, esp a mother or wife

verb

(tr) to protect or provide with an apron

Word Origin for apron

C16: mistaken division (as if an apron) of earlier a napron, from Old French naperon a little cloth, from nape cloth, from Latin mappa napkin

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

Science definitions for apron

apron

[ ā′prən ]

An area covered by a blanketlike deposit of glacial, eolian, marine, or alluvial sediments, especially an area at the foot of a mountain or in front of a glacier.

apron

noun

verb (used with object)

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of apron

Related forms

Examples from the Web for apron

British Dictionary definitions for apron

apron

noun

verb

Word Origin for apron

Science definitions for apron

apron