cheval-de-frise

[ shuh-val-duh-freez ]

/ ʃəˈvæl dəˈfriz /

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noun, plural che·vaux-de-frise

[shuh-voh-duh-freez]. /ʃəˈvoʊ dəˈfriz/. Usually chevaux-de-frise.

a portable obstacle, usually a sawhorse, covered with projecting spikes or barbed wire, for military use in closing a passage, breaking in a defensive wall, etc.

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Origin of cheval-de-frise

1680–90; <French; literally, horse of Friesland, so called because first used by Frisians

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use cheval-de-frise in a sentence

In the last year, her fusion exercise class has attracted a cult following and become de rigueur among the celebrity set.
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They tried to continue their getaway but had to quickly abandon their vehicle on the Rue de Meaux in the 19th.
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Humans spent a long time domesticating cattle, and what they were trying to do, in essence, was de-domesticate them.
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The band was still on its way back as De Blasio and his wife departed.
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Yet even after the funeral protest, de Blasio was booed and heckled while addressing a new class of recruits as well.
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Madame de Condillac stood watching him, her face composed, her glance cold.
St. Martin's Summer|Rafael Sabatini
Then the door opened, the portiere was swept aside, and Anselme announced "Monsieur de Garnache."
St. Martin's Summer|Rafael Sabatini
San Antonio de Bexar lies in a fertile and well-irrigated valley, stretching westward from the river Salado.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
One evening, while he was thus engaged, he observed de Patinos and Duke Wharton enter together.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
Without any known cause of offence, a tacit acknowledgement of mutual dislike was shewn by Louis and de Patinos.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter

British Dictionary definitions for cheval-de-frise

cheval-de-frise

/ (ʃəˌvældəˈfriːz) /

noun plural chevaux-de-frise (ʃəˌvəʊdəˈfriːz)

a portable barrier of spikes, sword blades, etc, used to obstruct the passage of cavalry

a row of spikes or broken glass set as an obstacle on top of a wall

Word Origin for cheval-de-frise

C17: from French, literally: horse from Friesland (where it was first used)

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