portcullis

[ pawrt-kuhl-is, pohrt- ]

/ pɔrtˈkʌl ɪs, poʊrt- /

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noun

(especially in medieval castles) a strong grating, as of iron, made to slide along vertical grooves at the sides of a gateway of a fortified place and let down to prevent passage.

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Origin of portcullis

1300–50; Middle English portecolys<Middle French porte coleice, equivalent to porteport⁴ + coleice, feminine of coleis flowing, sliding <Vulgar Latin *cōlātīcius;see coulee, -itious

Words nearby portcullis

port captain, Port Charlotte, Port Chester, Port Colborne, Port Coquitlam, portcullis, port de bras, Port du Salut, Porte, porte-cochere, Port Elizabeth

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use portcullis in a sentence

The drawbridge is raised and the portcullis closed, so that a thieving Redskin would find it a hard matter to make his way in.
In the Wilds of Florida|W.H.G. Kingston
They suddenly let down the portcullis, which they had raised somewhat by pulleys, and thus closed up the gateway.
The Histories of Polybius, Vol. II (of 2)|Polybius
The passage is vaulted, and has massive doors of oak studded with iron; formerly there was also a portcullis.
Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Carlisle|C. King Eley
The portcullis was suddenly dropped; Copeland, mistaken for his master, remained a prisoner.
Female Warriors, Vol. I (of 2)|Ellen C. Clayton

The hair rose on Claude's head, but he set his teeth; though the man died, though he died, the portcullis must fall!
The Long Night|Stanley Weyman

British Dictionary definitions for portcullis

portcullis

/ (pɔːtˈkʌlɪs) /

noun

an iron or wooden grating suspended vertically in grooves in the gateway of a castle or fortified town and able to be lowered so as to bar the entrance

Word Origin for portcullis

C14 port colice, from Old French porte coleïce sliding gate, from porte door, entrance + coleïce, from couler to slide, flow, from Late Latin cōlāre to filter

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

portcullis

Origin of portcullis

Words nearby portcullis

Words related to portcullis

How to use portcullis in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for portcullis

Word Origin for portcullis