portcullis
Use Portcullis in a sentence
ɪs, poʊrt- noun
(especially in medieval castles) a strong grating, as of iron, made to slide along vertical grooves at the sides of a gateway of a fortified place and let down to prevent passage.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To portcullis
Collins
World English Dictionary
portcullis (pɔːtˈkʌlɪs) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| an iron or wooden grating suspended vertically in grooves in the gateway of a castle or fortified town and able to be lowered so as to bar the entrance | |
| [C14 port colice, from Old French porte coleïce sliding gate, from porte door, entrance + coleïce, from couler to slide, flow, from Late Latin cōlāre to filter] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10
Portcullis
is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
portcullis
c.1300, from O.Fr. porte coleice "sliding gate" (c.1200), from porte "gate" (see port (2)) + coleice "sliding, flowing," fem. of coleis, from L. colatus, pp. of colare "to filter, strain."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
In the biographer's ears rang the sound of the portcullis crashing down.
Olga's door is a retrofitted portcullis of makeshift armor plate.
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