headgear

American  

[hed-geer] / ˈhɛdˌgɪər /

noun

1. any covering for the head, heads, especially a hat, cap, bonnet, etc.

2. a protective covering for the head, heads, as a steel helmet or football helmet.

3. the parts of a harness about the animal's head. heads.

4. Orthodontics Informal. a device worn on the head heads and attached by wires and elastic bands to braces in the mouth, used to create backward tension in the process of repositioning protruding teeth.

5. Mining. a headframe and its machinery.

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headgear British  

/ ˈhɛdˌɡɪə /

noun

1. any head covering, esp a hat

2. any part of a horse's harness that is worn on the head

3. the hoisting mechanism at the pithead of a mine

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Etymology

Origin of headgear

First recorded in 1530–40; head + gear

Example Sentences

Part of the fault for the spinal injury lay with Tipping, who chose not to wear safety headgear before taking part in the training, McGuire argued.

From Los Angeles Times

Aisha adjusted her beige veil over her circular-shaped headgear as a matchmaker scrolled through rows of dozens of pictures on a computer to find a man she could be interested in as a potential match.

From Barron's

If he weren’t a trauma doctor, you might chalk up the missing headgear to romantic imagery and an homage to “Then Came Bronson.”

From The Wall Street Journal

If the thieves who dropped Empress Eugenie’s crown outside the Louvre during this year’s heist, sparked an interest in jeweled headgear, try this encyclopedic guide to the world’s most famous tiaras.

From The Wall Street Journal

For centuries, appearing in public without the proper headgear was a faux pas.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• fedora
• helmet