/ ˈeɪprən; NAmE / noun
1.
a piece of clothing worn over the front of the body, from the chest or the waist down, and tied around the waist. Aprons are worn over other clothes to keep them clean, for example when cooking.
—compare pinafore
2.
( technical ) an area with a hard surface at an airport, where aircraft are turned around, loaded, etc.
3.
(also ˈapron stage ) ( technical ) ( in a theatre ) the part of the stage that is in front of the curtain
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IDIOMS
- (tied to) sb's apron strings
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English naperon , from Old French , diminutive of nape , nappe tablecloth, from Latin mappa napkin. The n was lost by wrong division of a napron ; compare with adder .