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Glite Dictionary
ring mail

ring mail

1 9.9
A type of flexible armor made of small metal rings linked together
  • noun
  • /rɪŋ meɪl/
translation icon : cota de malla
  • The museum displayed a suit of ring mail worn by a medieval knight.

Examples

  • Historians debate the protective effectiveness of ring mail compared to chain mail.

  • He admired the craftsmanship involved in creating ring mail by hand.

  • The knight wore a suit of ring mail into battle.

  • I found some old ring mail in the attic.

  • The knight wore a suit of ring mail to protect himself in battle.

  • In the museum, we saw a historic ring mail shirt that had survived for centuries.

  • The blacksmith crafted a new piece of ring mail for the armor of the king's guard.

Synonyms

mail
vsring mail
  • Archaic
8 9.9

Armor made of small metal rings joined to protect the body

is the more specific medieval form focusing on loop construction
chain mail
vsring mail
4 8.6

A flexible shirt of small metal rings joined together for protection

has identical meaning and is another common historical label
coat of mail
vsring mail
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A piece of clothing with small metal rings linked together that protects the body in battle

is limited to the pure loop form without added plates
ring armor
vsring mail
  • Archaic
9.9

Flexible protective clothing made from small metal rings linked together

is the same but emphasizes the loop construction
chain armor
vsring mail
  • US
8.2

A protective shirt made of small metal rings linked together, worn by knights and soldiers

is the same but reads as a general descriptive term

How Protective

plate armor
  • Specialized
8.0
ring mail
1 9.9

Surface Forms

ring mail singular
ring mails plural

Morphology

ring + mail

The meaning 'armor made of interlinked metal rings' is directly and literally built from 'ring' (the constituent element) plus 'mail' (a protective garment of linked rings). Although slightly redundant because 'mail' already implies linked rings, the noun–noun compound is compositional and follows predictable English word-formation, so a B1 learner who knows both words will understand it.

Etymology

Ring mail comes from the way the armor was made: many small metal rings were joined to form flexible mail, an old word for 'armor'. That's why ring mail means a suit of armor made of linked rings.