Definition

1. Noun:
   • Armor plate that protects the chest; the front part of a cuirass: A piece of defensive armor, typically made of metal or other rigid material, worn to cover and protect the chest and torso of a soldier, knight, or warrior.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The knight's ornate breastplate was polished to a brilliant shine.
  • Archaeologists discovered a bronze breastplate among the ancient warrior's remains.
  • The breastplate was an essential component of a soldier's armor in many historical periods.

Advanced Usage

• "To stand breastplate to breastplate": To confront or face an opponent directly and with great force or determination.
  • The two armies met and fought breastplate to breastplate in the narrow pass.

Variants and Related Words

• Cuirass (n): A piece of armor consisting of a breastplate and a backplate fastened together.
• Plackart (n): A reinforcing plate worn over a breastplate, especially in the 15th century.
• Gorget (n): A piece of armor protecting the throat, often worn with a breastplate.

Synonyms

• Chest plate: A plate of armor for the chest.
• Plastron: A term for a breastplate, also used for the ventral part of a shell in turtles and tortoises.

Related Phrases

(Note: As a specific noun for a piece of armor, 'breastplate' does not commonly form phrasal verbs. Related phrases are idiomatic or descriptive.) - Clad in a breastplate: Wearing a breastplate. - The general was clad in a steel breastplate.

Related Idioms

• The breastplate of righteousness: A metaphorical phrase from religious texts, representing moral integrity or faith as a form of spiritual protection.
  • He faced his critics with the breastplate of righteousness, confident in his honest actions.

Noun

1. armor plate that protects the chest; the front part of a cuirass