casque

American  

[kask] / kæsk /

noun

1. an open, conical helmet with a nose guard, commonly used in the medieval period.

2. any helmet-shaped head covering.

3. Zoology. a process or formation on the head, resembling a helmet.

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casque British  

/ kæsk /

noun

1. zoology a helmet or a helmet-like process or structure, as on the bill of most hornbills

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Other Word Forms

• casqued
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of casque

1570–80; < Middle French < Spanish casco helmet, head, earthen pot; akin to cascara

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

casque

The market incentivizes the poachers—the beak of the helmeted hornbill in Indonesia, for example, with its red rubbery neck, remarkably expressive eyes, and prized casque that resembles ivory, can sell for thousands of dollars.

From Slate ● Apr. 4, 2019

But it's the hornbill's helmet, or casque, that sits on top of its bill that is pushing it to the brink of survival.

From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2016

The bird’s casque is used to hammer out insects from rotting wood, or to fight.

From The Guardian ● Sep. 28, 2016

Does hornbill behaviour or ecology give us an insight as to which pressures contributed to casque evolution?

From Scientific American ● Apr. 22, 2014

Brass′-band, a band or company of musicians who perform on brass instruments; Brass′et, a casque or armour covering for the head: a helmet; Brass′found′er, a maker of articles in brass.—adjs.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various

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