chaperone

American  

[shap-uh-rohn] / ˈʃæp əˌroʊn /

Or chaperon

noun

• chaperones
  plural

1. 

   a person, usually a married or older woman, who, for propriety, accompanies a young unmarried woman in public or who attends a party of young unmarried men and women.

   Synonyms:

   escort

2. any adult present in order to maintain order or propriety at an activity of young people, as at a school dance.

3. a round headdress of stuffed cloth with wide cloth streamers that fall from the crown or are draped around it, worn in the 15th century.

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verb (used with object)

1. to attend or accompany as chaperone.

   Synonyms:

   escort

verb (used without object)

1. to act as chaperone.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• chaperonage
  noun
• chaperonless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• chaperones
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of chaperone

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, Middle French: “hood, cowl,” equivalent to chape cape ¹ + -eron noun suffix; figurative sense from French (18th century)

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Explanation

High school dances always have at least one chaperone to keep an eye on things. A chaperone is someone who looks after and supervises another person or a group of people. Chaperone can also be spelled chaperon, without the e. It originally meant a woman whose duty was to accompany a younger woman and make sure she wasn't harmed and didn't get into trouble, especially when she was with a man. These days, chaperone is most often used to describe an adult who supervises a group of kids or teenagers. The Old English meaning was "protective hood or head covering," and today the word chaperone retains that "protective" quality.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

chaperone chaperones

Anderson was released from Maghaberry Prison to attend the funeral, but absconded from his court-approved civilian chaperone.

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026

Yet these survivors are so hard-wired to be fearful of their neighbors that Hig and Cima’s rusty, tentative flirtation takes place under the gaze of her daddy’s gun, a heck of a chaperone.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026

As the company spread across the U.S., it maintained rules for decades: Kids were allowed only with a chaperone age 25 or older, and adults could tote along just three total kids.

From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026

These chaperone policies—sometimes called youth escort or parental guidance policies—started decades ago and have increased alongside the rise in mall disruptions over the years.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 13, 2026

Dad acted as chaperone whenever the pressure of business permitted.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

The cheerleaders needed to be glammed-up, professionalized—and able to go on the road without chaperones.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

Sporting brown berets and screen-printed vests with colorful hand-sewn badges, they followed chaperones inside as guests waiting in line recognized them.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2026

But some of the players - who were accompanied by chaperones - reportedly told reporters that they wanted to go back to Iran.

From BBC ● Mar. 10, 2026

James Cockayne, an Australian anti-slavery official, tells us there are “concerns that the women are being accompanied by chaperones and minders from the Iranian regime who are controlling their ability to move and speak freely.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 9, 2026

Mr. Barkley and Mr. Kamata were going to be the chaperones for all the kids who lived in the Casa Rosada and the rest of the eight hundred block of Orchard Avenue.

From "The Egypt Game" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

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