[cui.rass] n [ME curas, fr. MF curasse, fr. LL coreacea, fem. of coreaceus leathern, fr. L corium skin, leather; akin to OE heortha deerskin, L cortex bark, Gk keirein to cut--more at shear] (15c) 1: a piece of armor covering the body from neck to waist; also: the breastplate of such a piece
2: something (as bony plates covering an animal) resembling a cuirass -- cui.rassed adj