Word.ws English Dictionary

pavis

/ˈpɑv.ɪs/US/pəˈvaɪz/

pavis noun: most usually, a very large shield fitted with a stand, like a small moveable wall, carried in front to protect all or most of the bearer's body that could be positioned independently of the user, such as a crossbowman, often with a projecting ridge running vertically down the center. However, smaller, more standard shield types were also termed as such, with the central verticle ridge as a defining feature.

Noun

pavis (plural pavises or pavisses)

  1. Most usually, a very large shield fitted with a stand, like a small moveable wall, carried in front to protect all or most of the bearer's body that could be positioned independently of the user, such as a crossbowman, often with a projecting ridge running vertically down the center. However, smaller, more standard shield types were also termed as such, with the central verticle ridge as a defining feature.
    • For in this proceſſe, Parrot nothĩg hath ſurmyſed
      No matter pretendyd, nor nothyng enterpryſed
      But that metaphora, alegoria with all
      Shall be his protectyon, his pauys and his wallc. 1521, John Skelton, Speke Parott

Forms of pavis

pluralpavises
pluralpavisses
alternative formpavise
alternative formpavais
alternative formpabys
alternative formpavese
alternative formpavesse

Origin of pavis

From Middle English pavis(e) (paveis, pavas), from Anglo-Norman pavis (compare French pavois), from Latin pavensis, probably from Pavia in Italy. Compare Italian pavese.

Questions about pavis

What does pavis mean?
Pavis means most usually, a very large shield fitted with a stand, like a small moveable wall, carried in front to protect all or most of the bearer's body that could be positioned independently of the user, such as a crossbowman, often with a projecting ridge running vertically down the center. However, smaller, more standard shield types were also termed as such, with the central verticle ridge as a defining feature.
What part of speech is pavis?
Pavis is a noun.
How do you pronounce pavis?
Pavis is pronounced /ˈpɑv.ɪs/.
What is the plural of pavis?
The plural of pavis is pavises.

Words near pavis in the dictionary

  1. pavior
  2. paviors
  3. Paviotso
  4. paviour
  5. paviours
  6. pavis
  7. pavisade
  8. pavisades
  9. pavise
  10. paviser
  11. pavisers

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: pavis (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “pavis.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/pavis. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.