Skip to main content
escutcheon

escutcheon

9.9
A metal plate around a keyhole or door handle
  • noun
  • /ɪˈskʌtʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : placa
  • That's an 18th-century escutcheon plate.
  • a brass escutcheon

Examples

  • The ornate escutcheon around the door knob gave the entrance a vintage charm.

  • When replacing the doorknob, ensure the new one fits securely onto the existing escutcheon.

  • Try fitting a metric doorknob onto a standard escutcheon.

  • Ily walked straight through to a security door and raised a small escutcheon that Sinklar recognized as the jessant-de-lis.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • Both sprinklers are chrome-finished and equipped with a conical escutcheon.

    Academic text (2000)
  • Their robust steel frame is mounted internally with a cast-iron flange that tightens the sprinkler escutcheon to the wall or ceiling.

    Academic text (2000)
  • The ship's stern was adorned with a beautifully crafted escutcheon that displayed the family crest.

Synonyms

scutcheon
vsescutcheon
9.9

A small plate around a keyhole or handle that protects the door

includes decorative and maritime uses beyond simple surface protection
finger plate
vsescutcheon
  • UK
6.3

A flat plate on a door that protects the paint from finger marks

applies to plates in more places and often serves decorative roles

Idioms

A single event that harms a person or group's good reputation

Surface Forms

escutcheon singular
escutcheons plural

Etymology

The word escutcheon also kept the idea of a 'shield' for objects: it became a small plate that protects or decorates a surface, so an escutcheon is the protective or decorative plate around a keyhole, door handle, or on the back of a ship.