| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| abatis |
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| SYLLABICATION: | ab·a·tis |
| PRONUNCIATION: |   b  -t  , -t s |
| NOUN: | Inflected forms: pl. ab·a·tis (-tz) or ab·a·tis·es (-t-sz)
A defensive obstacle made by laying felled trees on top of each other with branches, sometimes sharpened, facing the enemy. | | ETYMOLOGY: | French, pile of things thrown down, from Old French abateis; akin to abattre, to throw down. See abate.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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