Etymology

battlement

B3A1T1T1L1E1M3E1N1T1

Today it means: In fortification: an indented parapet, formed by a series of rising members called cops or merlons, separated by openings called crenelles or embrasures, the soldier sheltering himself behind the merlon while he fires through the embrasure or through a loophole in the battlement. Full definition →

Middle English batilment ← Old French bataillement
Ask AI about its historyChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

The story

  1. Old French · derived frombataillement
  2. Middle English · inherited frombatilment
  3. English todaybattlement

From Middle English batilment, from Old French bataillement, earlier bastillement (“fortification”), from bastillier (“to fortify, to equip with battlements”), from bastille (“fortress”) (see bastion). By surface analysis, battle + -ment.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.