surcoat
Americannoun
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a garment worn over medieval armor, often embroidered with heraldic arms.
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an outer coat or other outer garment.
noun
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a tunic, often embroidered with heraldic arms, worn by a knight over his armour during the Middle Ages
-
an outer coat or other garment
Etymology
Origin of surcoat
1300–50; Middle English surcote < Middle French. See sur- 1, coat
Explanation
The long, sleeveless outer garment that Western Europeans commonly wore during the Middle Ages was called a surcoat. Pictures of medieval knights often show them with loose surcoats over their armor. Men wore surcoats from around the 12th century, while women began to wear them about a hundred years later. A knight's surcoat was often decorated with a coat of arms and had long slits at the front and back to allow the knight to move freely and ride a horse easily. During the 14th century, a stylish surcoat for women was floor-length, with extremely large arm holes, so the dress beneath could be seen.
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.
The black motif would have also been on the prince's surcoat worn over his armour, and on the horse's caparison.
From BBC • Jul. 7, 2014
Another example takes the form of a samurai’s surcoat, meant to be worn over armor.
From New York Times • Aug. 29, 2013
The other was from relatives who 22 years ago scorned him as unworthy of chivalry by having his banner, surcoat, helmet and sword removed from the chapel of the Order of the Garter at Windsor.
From Time Magazine Archive
A striding huntsman had been worked in scarlet thread upon the breast of the fat boy's fur-trimmed surcoat.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
"Look at the arms on his surcoat," Jon suggested.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
