machicolate

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verb

To furnish with machicolations.

OriginMedieval Latin machicolātus ← Old French machicoller ← Old Occitan machacol →
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Meanings

verbmachicolate (third-person singular simple present machicolates, present participle machicolating, simple past and past participle machicolated)

present singular third person machicolates · participle present machicolating · participle past machicolated · past machicolated

  1. To furnish with machicolations.

    The wide-wing’d sunset of the misty marsh / Glared on a huge machicolated tower / That stood with open doors […]

    1871, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, “The Last Tournament”, in Gareth and Lynette etc., London: Strahan, published 1872, page 116

Origin

  1. Old Occitanmachacol
  2. Old Frenchmachicoller
  3. Medieval Latinmachicolātus
  4. Englishmachicolate

From Medieval Latin machicolātus, perfect participle of machicolāre, from Old French machicoller, from machicolleis (“machicolation”), from Old Occitan machacol, from macar (“to crush”) + col (“neck”).

More words from Medieval Latin, Old French, Old Occitan

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

machicolate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/machicolate

MLA

“machicolate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/machicolate. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “machicolate,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/machicolate.

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