pavise

Variant of pavis

noun

a large shield for protecting the entire body, used in the 14th through 16th cent.
also sp. pavise

Origin: ME paveis < MFr pavaiz < It pavese after Pavia, Italy, where first made

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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