Hauberk
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A coat of mail; especially, the long coat of mail of the European Middle Ages, as contrasted with the habergeon, which is shorter and sometimes sleeveless.
"The hauberk was a complete covering of mail from head to foot. It consisted of a hood, joined to a jacket with sleeves, breeches, stockings and shoes of double chain mail, to which were added gauntlets of the same construction."
- 2 a long (usually sleeveless) tunic of chain mail formerly worn as defensive armor wordnet
- 3 A similar shirt of scale armour, plate, leather, or other armor material. uncommon
"The habergeon is the mail in this case, and the hauberk is of plate or splint armour, while the cote-armoure is the surcoat, possibly thickly padded, as in the still-existing surcoat of the Black Prince."
Example
More examples"The hauberk was a complete covering of mail from head to foot. It consisted of a hood, joined to a jacket with sleeves, breeches, stockings and shoes of double chain mail, to which were added gauntlets of the same construction."
Etymology
From Middle English hauberk, from Old French hauberc, from Frankish *halsaberg (“neck-cover”).
Related phrases
More for "hauberk"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.