battlement
/ˈbat(ə)lm(ə)nt
/noun (usually battlements)
1A parapet at the top of a wall, especially of a fort or castle, that has regularly spaced squared openings for shooting through.Here, you can see stone cannon balls built into the castle walls, defensive battlements and interior living quarters....
- Set within five acres of orchard and boasting battlements, parapet walkway, Great Hall and thick stone walls, the tower is perched above Crossford in the beautiful Clyde Valley.
- I sat in the guard barracks in the outer wall of the castle battlements.
Synonyms
castellation, parapet, rampart, balustrade, wall, bulwark, barbican, bastion;
fortification, breastwork, crenellation, circumvallation, outwork;
in ancient Rome vallum
rare bartizan
1.1A section of roof enclosed by battlements: I want to go up on the battlements...
- The roofs even had battlements, were Diago stood now.
- Then she mounted the battlement and stood atop the roof, raving.
Derivatives
battlemented
/ adjective ...- As a building, Maison Krug disappoints - just a yard, cellar and offices - and I cast envious glances at other champagne houses in Reims, especially Pommery which is a fantastic Disneyland castle with battlemented walls.
- Almost immediately this was surrounded by a lower battery providing fourteen further gun positions, while about 1550 a battlemented entrance block was built containing the governor's lodgings.
- Its red, white and blue uprights support a span depicting Derry's gates with a battlemented head topped by a crown.
Origin
Late Middle English: from Old French bataillier 'fortify with movable defence turrets', possibly related to battle.