Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A crested metal helmet with a curved peak in front and back, worn by soldiers in the 16th and 17th centuries.
- n. A black or blackish brown form of smoky quartz.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A form of helmet of iron, steel, or brass. somewhat like a hat in shape, often with a crest or comb over the top, and without beaver or vizor, introduced into England from France or Spain about the beginning of the sixteenth century.
- n. A variety of smoky quartz having a very dark-brown or nearly black color. It is probably the same as the mormorion of Pliny, although some writers refer this to black tourmalin.
Wiktionary
- n. A kind of open helmet used in the 16th and 17th centuries, having no visor or bever, and somewhat resembling a hat.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A kind of open helmet, without visor or beaver, and somewhat resembling a hat.
- n. A dark variety of smoky quartz.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a metal helmet worn by common soldiers in the 16th century
Etymologies
- French, from Spanish morrión, from morro, round object, probably from Vulgar Latin *murrum, muzzle.
Examples
“N3, The vseles morion shall On crooke hang by the wall. c1600 Diurnal of Occurrents (1833) 212 Ane greit number of hagbittis, corslattis and mirriounis, togedder with some vyne [etc.]. c1600 Hist.”
“Certain varieties are sometimes distinguished (esp. by modern historians) according to shape, as comb (also cockscomb) morion, Spanish (also pear-shaped) morion, etc.”
“Costume 280 A morion and bourginot of the same period.”
“With sense 2 cf. French morion punishment inflicted on soldiers (1605), so called in allusion to the hat suspended at the end of the shaft of the halberd which held the soldier while the punishment was inflicted.”
“We have already said the patient was eminently handsome, and the removal of his helmet, or more properly, of his morion, had suffered his fair locks to escape in profusion, around a countenance in which the hilarity of youth was qualified by a blush of modesty at once and pleasure.”
“The good King was seated on horseback about half way up the mount, a morion on his head, surmounted by a crown, which left his manly features exposed to public view, as, with cool and considerate eye, he perused each rank as it passed him, and returned the salutation of the leaders.”
“He wears half-armor of high quality: a well-fitted cuirass on his upper body, and protective britches of the latest design with light steel plates on his thighs.4 His helmet is no ordinary morion, or crude iron pot of the kind that we associate with Spanish conquistadors and English colonists.”
“His helmet is no ordinary morion, or crude iron pot of the kind that we associate with Spanish conquistadors and English colonists.”
The Wall Street Journal: 'Champlain's Dream: The European Founding of North America'
“Sailor-fashion, he had no armor on but a light morion and a cuirass, so he was not too much encumbered to prevent his springing to his legs instantly, and setting to work, cutting and foining right and left at every sound, for sight there was none.”
“King received a copper coal-scuttle right over his eyes, and a mahogany wardrobe was discharged at his morion, which would have felled an ox, and would have done for the King had not Ivanhoe warded it off skilfully.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘morion’.
-
[Open] “What’s that on your head?”
Headgear: “anything worn on the head” (that isn’t part of the head). Hats are fine, but for a more detailed, wider selection of fashionable hats in all colors and sizes, please see Reese Tee’s li...
goggles, wig, headdress, cap, hackamore, halter, bridle, beanie, turban, hat, crown, chapeau and 122 more...
-
Minerals and Mineralogy
List of minerals, elements, group names and geochemistry terms encountered in the science of mineralogy. I've chosen to avoid capital letters in most examples, though a great many mineral names hon...
galkhaite, xanthoconite, pyrostilpnite, polybasite, pyrargyrite, djurleite, digenite, covellite, chalcocite, cerargirite, acanthite, aeschynite and 2536 more...
-
Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 1128 more...
-
Tolkien's archaisms
sigaldry, moot, kine, fey, eyot, ghylls, gangrel, glede, ilexes, laved, niggard, league and 44 more...
-
names of hats
liripipe, cowl, capuchon, liripipium, snood, bonnet, toque, turban, poke, toboggan-cap, crown, fedora and 72 more...
knitandpurl "Brentford and the Scavengers passed through the gate to find the gigantic Varangian Guards silently lined up in a row, their barbed halberds pointed at the intruders, and quite impressive in their shining armour plates and morion helms."
Aurorarama by Jean-Christophe Valtat, p 383 Jul 24, 2011