apron
- 01 A2 Elementary
n.a piece of clothing you tie around your waist or neck to protect your clothes from dirt or spills.
n.a protective garment worn over the front of one's clothes and tied at the back, typically used in cooking, cleaning, or manual trades.
Simple“He put on a clean apron before he started baking the bread.”
In context“The blacksmith donned a heavy leather apron to protect his torso from stray sparks and heat while working at the forge.”
Synonymspinaforesmock - 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.the hard, flat area at an airport where planes park, load passengers, or get fuel.
n.the paved area of an airport where aircraft are parked, unloaded or loaded, refueled, or boarded.
Simple“The plane waited on the apron for twenty minutes before moving to the runway.”
In context“Ground crew personnel were busy across the apron, coordinating the simultaneous refueling and baggage loading of several international flights.”
- 03 C1 Advanced
n.a flat piece of wood or stone found just below a window frame or on a wall.
n.a decorative or structural raised panel located immediately below a window sill or a wall monument.
Simple“The carpenter replaced the wooden apron under the window because it was rotting.”
In context“The restoration project required a specialist to replicate the ornate marble apron situated beneath the cathedral's commemorative tablet.”
- 04 C2 Proficiency
v.to cover something with a layer, like putting an apron on it.
v.to cover or provide a surface with a protective or decorative layer resembling an apron.
Simple“The low hills were aproned with a thick layer of morning mist.”
In context“The architect suggested aproning the base of the monument with granite to prevent erosion from heavy rainfall.”
Rebracketing of napron (a napron → an apron), from Middle English naperoun, napron, apron, from Old French napperon, diminutive of nappe (“tablecloth”), from Latin mappa (“napkin”). For other similar cases of rebracketing, see adder, daffodil, newt, nickname, orange, trickle, umpire.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.