definitions

embrasure

[ em-brey-zher ]
/ ɛmˈbreɪ ʒər /
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR embrasure ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

(in fortification) an opening, as a loophole or crenel, through which missiles may be discharged.
Architecture. a splayed enlargement of a door or window toward the inner face of a wall.
Dentistry. the space between adjacent teeth.

RELATED WORDS

incision, indentation, heart, cranny, hollow, dent, cubicle, depression, slot, angle, closet, cavity, nook, cell, crutch, fork, opening, alcove, cove, break

Nearby words

embraceor, embracery, embracive, embranchment, embrangle, embrasure, embrittle, embrittlement, embrocate, embrocation, embroglio

Origin of embrasure

1695–1705; < French, equivalent to embras(er) to enlarge a window or door opening, make an embrasure (apparently the same v. as embraser to set on fire (see embrace2), though sense shift unclear) + -ure -ure

Related forms

em·bra·sured, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for embrasure

British Dictionary definitions for embrasure

embrasure

/ (ɪmˈbreɪʒə) /

noun

fortifications an opening or indentation, as in a battlement, for shooting through
an opening forming a door or window, having splayed sides that increase the width of the opening in the interior

Derived Forms

embrasured, adjective

Word Origin for embrasure

C18: from French, from obsolete embraser to widen, of uncertain origin
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

Medicine definitions for embrasure

embrasure

[ ĕm-brā′zhər ]

n.

The sloped valley between two teeth.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.