chevron

UK: /ˈʃɛvrɒn/ US: /ˈʃɛvrən/ ,(shev′rən)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

chev•ron /ˈʃɛvrən/   n. [countable]

1. Military a badge of one or moreV-shaped stripes worn on the sleeve by noncommissioned officers to indicate rank.
2. Architecture anyV-shaped ornament, marker, or object.

chev•roned, adj. 

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

chev•ron  (shev′rən), n. 

1. a badge consisting of stripes meeting at an angle, worn on the sleeve by noncommissioned officers, police officers, etc., as an indication of rank, service, or the like.
2. an ornament in this form, as on a molding.
3. Textiles Also called chev′ron weave′. herringbone (def. 2a).
4. [Heraldry.] an ordinary in the form of an invertedV.

• Vulgar Latin *capriōn- (stem of *capriō), derivative of Latin caper goat
• Old French: rafter, chevron
• Middle English cheveroun 1300–50

chev′roned, adj. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

chevron / ˈʃɛvrən/ noun

1. a badge or insignia consisting of one or more V-shaped stripes to indicate a noncommissioned rank or length of service
2. an inverted V-shaped charge on a shield, one of the earliest ordinaries found in English arms
3. (usually plural) a pattern of horizontal black and white V-shapes on a road sign indicating a sharp bend
4. any V-shaped pattern or device

Etymology: 14th Century: from Old French, ultimately from Latin caper goat; compare Latin capreoli two pieces of wood forming rafters (literally: little goats)