Pronunciation: sh ə - ˌ val-d ə - ' fr ē z
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural che · vaux-de-frise \ sh ə - ˌ v ō - \
Etymology: F, literally, horse from Friesland
Date: 1668
1 : a defense consisting typically of a timber or an iron barrel covered with projecting spikes and often strung with barbed wire
2 : a protecting line (as of spikes) on top of a wall ― usually used in plural