Main Entry:

¹shroud

Pronunciation:

\ˈshrau̇d, especially Southern ˈsrau̇d\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Middle English, garment, from Old English scrūd; akin to Old English scrēade shred — more at shred

Date:

14th century

1obsolete : shelter, protection2: something that covers, screens, or guards: as a: one of two flanges that give peripheral support to turbine or fan bedding b: a usually fiberglass guard that protects a spacecraft from the heat of launching 3: burial garment : winding-sheet, cerement4 a: one of the ropes leading usually in pairs from a ship's mastheads to give lateral support to the masts b: one of the cords that suspend the harness of a parachute from the canopy

[shroud illustration]