épaulière

[ey-pohl-yair; French ey-poh-lyer]

noun, plural é·pau·lières

[ey-pohl-yairz; French ey-poh-lyer] /ˌeɪ poʊlˈyɛərz; French eɪ poʊˈlyɛr/. Armor.

pauldron.

Origin of épaulière

< French, equivalent to épaule (see epaulet) + -ière, feminine form of -ier -ier²; cf. brassiere

pauldron

[pawl-druh n]

noun Armor.

a piece of plate armor for the shoulder and the uppermost part of the arm, often overlapping the adjacent parts of the chest and back.

Compare spaulder.

Origin of pauldron

1400–50; earlier paleron, poleron, late Middle English polron, pollerons (plural) < Middle French espalleron shoulder. See epaulet

Also called epaulière.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for epauliere

Historical Examples of epauliere

I smote him back, a mighty blow upon his epauliere that shore the steel plate from his shoulder, and left him a vulnerable spot.
The Shame of Motley
Raphael Sabatini

British Dictionary definitions for epauliere

pauldron

noun

either of two metal plates worn with armour to protect the shoulders

Word Origin for pauldron

C15: from French espauleron, from espaule shoulder; see epaulette

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

Word Origin and History for epauliere

pauldron

"armor for the shoulder," mid-15c., from Old French espauleron, from espaule (French épaule) "shoulder" (see epaulet)