machicolation

[ muh-chik-uh-ley-shuhn ]

/ məˌtʃɪk əˈleɪ ʃən /

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noun Architecture.

an opening in the floor between the corbels of a projecting gallery or parapet, as on a wall or in the vault of a passage, through which missiles, molten lead, etc., might be cast upon an enemy beneath.

a projecting gallery or parapet with such openings.

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Origin of machicolation

First recorded in 1780–90; machicolate + -ion

Words nearby machicolation

Machiavellian, Machiavellianism, Machiavelli, Niccolò, machi chips, machicolate, machicolation, Machida, machilid, Machilipatnam, machinable, machinate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use machicolation in a sentence

It was therefore superseded ere long by the use of machicolation, where a projecting stone gallery replaced the woodwork.
The Art of War in the Middle Ages A.D. 378-1515|C. W. C. Oman
Another machicolation (I) opened from the roof in front of the second portcullis and second door.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 5|Various
This wooden story probably formed the bell chamber; the machicolation-like supports still existed in 1781.
Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Rochester|G. H. Palmer
Gables were furnished with crow-steps, while machicolation became at times almost fantastic.
British Castles|Charles H. Ashdown

British Dictionary definitions for machicolation

machicolation

/ (məˌtʃɪkəʊˈleɪʃən) /

noun

(esp in medieval castles) a projecting gallery or parapet supported on corbels having openings through which missiles could be dropped

any such opening

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012