Poitrel

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈpɔɪ.tɹəl/

Definitions

1. A piece of armor that protects the chest and front of a horse
2. A protective metal garment worn across the breast and front body of a mounted animal during combat or ceremonial occasions
3. A metal breastplate or chest defense fitted to a horse for battle or formal display

Etymology: The armour that protected a horse's chest was once known in English by a name that came almost straight from the French, with a slightly different spelling along the way. Middle English had "peitral" and "paytrel," borrowed from Anglo-Norman "peitral," and these in turn came from Old French "poitral," the word that survives today as "poitrail." The form "poitrel" is the one now used in English, and it traces back to the central and Parisian French spelling of that same word. The English form "poitral" is one of the forms that came into the language later, and it appears to have been introduced by William Caxton, the printer who brought the first printing press to England. So the spelling we see today reflects a particular French spelling that Caxton chose, rather than the older Anglo-Norman route through which the word first arrived.