arras

[ar-uh s]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR arras ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a rich tapestry.

a tapestry weave.

a wall hanging, as a tapestry or similar object.

Theater. a curtain suspended loosely across a stage and used as a backdrop or part of a stage setting.

Origin of arras

1375–1425; late Middle English, named after Arras

Related formsar·rased, adjective

arras

[ahr-ahs; Spanish ahr-rahs]

noun (used with a singular verb)

a gift presented at marriage by a husband to his wife in consideration of her dowry.

Origin of arras

< Spanish: literally, earnest money. See earnest²

Arras

[ar-uh s; French a-rahs]

noun

a city in and capital of Pas-de-Calais, in N France: battles in World War I.

Pas-de-Calais

[pahduh-ka-le]

noun

a department in N France. 2607 sq. mi. (6750 sq. km). Capital: Arras.

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

Related Words for arras

drapery, hanging, dosser

Examples from the Web for arras

Historical Examples of arras

They had remained behind the arras, and had not gone out as she must have supposed.
A Dish Of Orts
George MacDonald
At Arras in June, there was almost as much activity as at Ypres.
The Story of the Great War, Volume III (of VIII)
Various
When there he married the daughter of the rich owner of a spinning factory at Arras.
A Zola Dictionary
J. G. Patterson
If this army was defeated, the loss of Arras was not the only misfortune to be dreaded.
The Memoirs of Count Grammont, Complete
Anthony Hamilton
Not a picture on the walls, not an arras, but had been rent to shreds.
Mistress Wilding
Rafael Sabatini

British Dictionary definitions for arras

arras

noun

a wall hanging, esp of tapestry

Arras

noun

a town in N France: formerly famous for tapestry; severely damaged in both World Wars. Pop: 40 590 (1999)

Pas-de-Calais

noun

a department of N France, in Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, on the Straits of Dover (the Pas de Calais): the part of France closest to the British Isles. Capital: Arras. Pop: 1 451 307 (2003 est). Area: 6752 sq km (2633 sq miles)

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 arras

"pictured tapestry," late 14c., from Anglo-French draps d'arras, from Arras, city in France where pictured tapestries were made, from Latin Atrebates, name of a tribe of the Belgae who inhabited the Artois region; probably literally "inhabitants," from a Celtic trebu "tribe."