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gambeson

American  
[gam-buh-suhn] / ˈgæm bə sən /

noun

Armor.
  1. a quilted garment worn under mail.


gambeson British  
/ ˈɡæmbɪsən /

noun

  1. a quilted and padded or stuffed leather or cloth garment worn under chain mail in the Middle Ages and later as a doublet by men and women

"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

Etymology

Origin of gambeson

1300–50; Middle English ga ( u ) mbeson a military tunic < Old French gambison, gambeison, probably < Germanic


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

The Night’s Watch relies upon the heavier, less flexible quilted textile blouse known as a gambeson to trap heat radiating from the trunk4.

From Scientific American ● Apr. 17, 2014

Finally, the doff/hang/beat process is not effective with a gambeson because moisture is absorbed into the cloth from which it is made.

From Scientific American ● Apr. 17, 2014

Also about this court or hall there was much armour, plate, mail, both gambeson and chain, and many headpieces, gantlets, shields, etc.

From In the Day of Adversity by John Bloundelle-Burton

"O luxurious youth, then will I, and shame thy nice luxuriousness!" quoth Beltane; and off came hauberk and quilted gambeson and away skipped Sir Fidelis into the green.

From Beltane the Smith by Jeffery Farnol

The knight’s hawberk is worn over a gambeson of linen, quilted linen or cotton, which lesser men wear with a steel cap for all defence.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 6 "Armour Plates" to "Arundel, Earls of" by Various

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