curtal

C3U1R1T1A1L1
UK/ˈkəːtəl/

noun

A variety of short-barrelled cannon.

Similar
short
OriginFrench courtault →
Scrabble 8
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Meanings

nouncurtal (plural curtals)

plural curtals

  1. historicalA variety of short-barrelled cannon.
  2. entertainmentAn early type of bassoon.
  3. obsoleteA horse or other animal having a docked tail.
  4. obsoleteAnything docked or cut short.
adjectivecurtal (comparative more curtal, superlative most curtal)

comparative more curtal · superlative most curtal

  1. obsoleteOf horses, having a docked tail.
  2. archaicPhysically shortened; short.

    she had loosened her hair and changed into the curtal frock of sunbright cotton that he was so fond of and had so ardently yearned to soil in the so recent past.

    1969, Vladimir Nabokov, Ada or Ardor, Penguin, published 2011, page 98
  3. obsoleteAbridged, curtailed.

    essays and curtal aphorisms

    1649, J[ohn] Milton, ΕΙΚΟΝΟΚΛΆΣΤΗΣ [Eikonoklástēs] […], London: […] Matthew Simmons, […], →OCLC

Synonyms & antonyms

adjective(archaic) docked

Similar
short
Also see
short

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Frenchcourtault
  2. Englishcurtal

From older French courtault (modern French courtaud), from court (“short”) + -ault (pejorative suffix).

More words from French

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cultra
Cite this entry
APA

curtal. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/curtal

MLA

“curtal.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/curtal. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “curtal,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/curtal.

Source: curtal on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.