(within a fortification) a platform or mound of earth from which guns may be fired over the parapet instead of through embrasures.
Navy. an armored cylinder for protecting the lower part of a turret on a warship.
(formerly) an earthen platform inside a parapet, from which heavy guns could fire over the top
an armoured cylinder below a turret on a warship that protects the revolving structure and foundation of the turret
1765–75; < French, equivalent to barbe beard + -ette -ette, probably from the general metaphorical use of barbe for something which protrudes or faces outward
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Last came the ample habit-coat of heavy cloth, topped by a linen rochet and a stiffly starched barbette of cambric .
From Time Magazine Archive
He moved his piece from its first position en barbette on the right of the fort, to an embrasure that more effectually commanded the rebel advance.
From Campaign of Battery D, First Rhode Island light artillery. by Parker, Ezra Knight
Each of the three monitors at Barrow displaced 1,200 tons, and carried two 6-inch guns mounted forward in an armoured barbette, two 4.7-inch howitzers aft, and four 3-pounder guns amidships.
From The Childrens' Story of the War, Volume 3 (of 10) From the First Battle of Ypres to the End of the Year 1914 by Parrott, James Edward
Watching, I saw one shot from one of my bow barbette guns crash into the roof of the fine new H�tel du Louvre, in the Cannebi�re.
From The Great War in England in 1897 by Le Queux, William
Even in the older days discussion had arisen freely on the relative merits of barbette and casemate mounting.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 5 "Clervaux" to "Cockade" by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
