Bicorns

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of headgear characterized by two distinct points or horns that can be worn as part of formal attire
2. An ancient style of hat associated with various military uniforms, featuring two upward points
3. A historical fashion accessory resembling a two-pointed cap, often linked to certain ceremonial or professional outfits

Etymology: Bicorns are the hats that once defined naval and military dress: the two-cornered, brim-turned-up hat worn by Napoleon in his famous portraits. The plural form is simply the ordinary plural of "bicorn," and the word is one of a pair that came into English from the same source, the Latin adjective "bicornis," meaning "two-horned" or "two-pronged." That Latin word is built from "bi-," meaning "two," and "-cornis," from "cornu," meaning "horn." The same stem gives English "cornucopia" and "unicorn," so the hat's name is literally "two horns" applied to a piece of headwear whose points rise like a pair of horns. Medieval English used the same Latin shape for a two-horned anvil, a two-pronged fork, and a fabulous two-horned beast, showing that the word was applied to many two-pointed objects long before it named a hat.