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armoire

[ahrm-wahr, ahrm-wahr]
See more synonyms for armoire on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a large wardrobe or movable cupboard, with doors and shelves.
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Origin of armoire

1565–75; < Middle French; Old French blend of armaire and aumoire ambry
Can be confusedamour armoire armor
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for armoire

Historical Examples

  • I want you to see an armoire that he has carved, it is up in our exhibition room.

    Stories of a Western Town

    Octave Thanet

  • He had supposed it to be left behind in the armoire at Boisveyrac.

    Fort Amity

    Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch

  • He turned on his side and watched the sunbeam as it crept up the face of the armoire.

    Fort Amity

    Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch

  • It seemed such a small brown spot, in such haste, dipping between the candles on the armoire.

    When the Owl Cries

    Paul Bartlett

  • He puffed out a candle and watched her bend over another atop the armoire.

    When the Owl Cries

    Paul Bartlett

British Dictionary definitions for armoire

armoire

noun
  1. a large cabinet, originally used for storing weapons
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Word Origin

C16: from French, from Old French armaire, from Latin armārium chest, closet; see ambry
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

Word Origin and History for armoire

n.

1570s, from French armoire, from Old French armarie (12c.) "cupboard, bookcase, reliquary," from Latin armarium "closet, chest, place for implements or tools," from arma "gear, tools, arms" (see arm (n.2)). Before being reborrowed from French, the word earlier was in English as ambry (late 14c.).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper