curtal

[ kur-tl ]

adjective
  1. Archaic. wearing a short frock: a curtal friar.

  2. Obsolete. brief; curtailed.

noun
  1. a 16th-century bassoon.

  2. Obsolete. an animal with a docked tail.

Origin of curtal

1
1500–10; earlier courtault<Middle French, equivalent to court short (see curt) + -ault, variant of -ald noun suffix; see ribald

Words Nearby curtal

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How to use curtal in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for curtal

curtal

/ (ˈkɜːtəl) obsolete /


adjective
  1. cut short

  2. (of friars) wearing a short frock

noun
  1. an animal whose tail has been docked

  2. something that is cut short

Origin of curtal

1
C16: from Old French courtault animal whose tail has been docked, from court short, from Latin curtus; see curt

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