ˈärməˌchu̇(ə)r, -_chər, -ˌtu̇(ə)r, -.ˌtyu̇(ə)r; ˈȧməˌchu̇ə, -_chə, -ˌtu̇ə, -.ˌtyu̇ə noun
( -s )
Etymology: Latin armatura, from armatus (past participle of armare to arm) + -ura -ure — more at arm
1. : armor
2. : iron bars or framing employed for the consolidation of a building (as in sustaining slender columns, holding up canopies, stiffening glass windows)
3. : an organ or structure having a protective function
the armature of armadillos
sometimes : an organ or structure used for attack
a small animal having sharp teeth for its armature
4. : any of various spinous or sclerotized processes on insects ; especially : the corneous parts of the genitalia
5.
[New Latin armatura, from Latin]
a. : a piece of soft iron or steel that connects the poles of a magnet or of adjacent magnets to preserve the intensity of magnetization, produce signals (as in the telegraph), or do mechanical work by its motions to and from the magnet
b. : the part of a dynamoelectric machine carrying the conductors whose relative movement through the magnetic field between the pole pieces causes an electric current to be induced in the conductors (as in the dynamo) or which by having a current passed through them are caused by electromagnetic induction to move through this field (as in the motor)
c. : the movable part of an electromagnetic device (as a relay, buzzer, loudspeaker, or pickup)
6. : a skeleton or framework used by a sculptor to support a figure being modeled in a plastic material