chain mail

noun

|Updated on: 3 Jun 2018

Definition of chain mail

: flexible armor of interlinked metal rings

See chain mail defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of chain mail from the Web

Authentic helmets – of tooled leather and carved metal, corroded after a millennium underground, often with chain mail hanging – are on show next to metal swords decorated with Indian garnets.

— susan dunne, courant.com, "Viking Artifacts, Vinland Map On Display At Mystic Seaport," 22 May 2018
The actress’ Ralph Lauren strapless gown was paired with an embellished gold chain mail coif reminiscent of a medieval knight, an emphatic nod to the theme of the night, Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.

— cady lang, Time, "Priyanka Chopra Stuns in an Elegant Dress at the 2018 Met Gala," 8 May 2018
Elsewhere, there are flintlock rifles and camel saddlebags; kilims and suzanis; chain mail shirts and Tartar helmets.

— rod nordland, New York Times, "There Are No Chickens on Chicken Street. Now There Are No Customers Either.," 22 Apr. 2018
Her invitation was not lost in the mail—or the chain mail!

— lynn yaeger, Vogue, "What If Joan of Arc Went to the Met Ball?," 3 May 2018
Traditional dancers wilted in the heat, under heavy necklaces made of metal flowers woven together like chain mail, extending to their bellybuttons.

— maria abi-habib, New York Times, "How to Celebrate Buddha in Sri Lanka? Stop Partying, Some Say," 2 May 2018
So why does Adidas choose to saddle its featured schools with hideousness like the cummerbund basketball shorts or chain mail football jerseys?

— andy staples, SI.com, "Handicapping the Five Most Fascinating Quarterback Battles as Spring Practice Wraps," 16 Apr. 2018
On the name: KC’s Dragon Maille combines Hethcote’s name and her love of dragons and chain mail.

— vanessa infanzon, charlotteobserver, "CLT Made: KC's Dragon Maille | Charlotte Observer," 27 Mar. 2018
The artists first sculpted the figures from plaster, then covered each with a layer of welded washers like rigid chain mail.

— doug maccash, NOLA.com, "New 30 foot, $400,000 hospital sculpture rises on Canal Street," 27 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'chain mail.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of chain mail

1822

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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CHAIN MAIL Defined for English Language Learners

chain mail

noun

Definition of chain mail for English Language Learners

: a kind of protective clothing (called armor) that is made up of many tiny metal rings that are linked together and that was worn by knights and soldiers in the Middle Ages