apron

American  

[ey-pruhn] / ˈeɪ prən /

noun

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

   a kitchen apron.

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

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

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

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

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

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

8. Civil Engineering.

   1. any device for protecting a surface of earth, as a riverbank, from the action of moving water.

   2. a platform to receive the water falling over a dam.

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

10. Furniture. skirt.

11. the outer border of a green of a golf course.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

19. a structure erected around another structure, as for reinforcement or decoration.

    a high fence surrounded by a wire apron buried in the ground.

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verb (used with object)

1. to put an apron on; furnish with an apron.

2. to surround in the manner of an apron.

   The inner city is aproned by low-cost housing.

apron British  

/ ˈeɪprən /

noun

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

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

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

4. a continuous conveyor belt composed usually of slats linked together

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

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

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

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

9. golf the part of the fairway leading onto the green

10. machinery the housing for the lead screw gears of a lathe

11. another name for skirt

12. dependent on or dominated by someone, esp a mother or wife

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verb

1. (tr) to protect or provide with an apron

apron Scientific  

/ ā′prən /

1. 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.

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Other Word Forms

• apronlike adjective
• unaproned adjective

Etymology

Origin of apron

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

Example Sentences

When a New York Times reporter tried to interview a woman in a chef’s apron and clogs carrying a flower bouquet, she ran back to her van.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

He stands there in his leather apron and it's roaring like fireworks.

From BBC • Jan. 15, 2026

In one village, a woman in her 70s wore a green padded jacket underneath an apron as she crossed her outdoor courtyard.

From Barron's • Jan. 14, 2026

The number of shelters, together with apron space for more aircraft to stand outside, suggests the facility is turning into a “frontline airbase,” said Symon, who closely tracks military developments in this region.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025

She wiped a wet hand off on her white apron, which had blue waves embroidered across the top.

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

Related Words

• smock