Meaning of garderobe | Babel Free

Definitions

1. A storeroom or wardrobe.
   historical
2. A lavatory, especially in a castle and built into the outer wall, with vent directly over the moat or midden.
   historical

Equivalents

Examples

“He splashed some tepid water on his face⟳ from the basin beside his bed and took his time squatting in the garderobe, the night air cold on his bare skin.”

“In the early medieval period (1066-1300), the solution in huge stone castles was garderobes: small rooms that jutted out over the walls with a hole covered by a seat. Castle builders tried to site garderobes over a stream or a moat, but this was not always possible.”

“Even with the seat, most garderobes in castles did not encourage⟳ long stays.[…]Despite the unappealing and unsanitary nature of garderobe shafts, besieging forces on more than one occasion successfully entered castles by having men climb⟳ up the shafts.”

CEFR level