¹chaperone

noun chap·er·one \ˈsha-pə-ˌrōn\

: someone (such as a teacher or parent) who goes with children on a trip or to a school dance to make sure that the children behave properly

: a person in the past who went with a young unmarried woman to social events in order to make sure that the woman behaved properly

Full Definition of CHAPERONE

: a person (as a matron) who for propriety accompanies one or more young unmarried women in public or in mixed company

: an older person who accompanies young people at a social gathering to ensure proper behavior; broadly : one delegated to ensure proper behavior

: any of a class of proteins that facilitate the proper folding of proteins by binding to and stabilizing unfolded or partially folded proteins —called also molecular chaperone

See chaperone defined for English-language learners

See chaperone defined for kids

Variants of CHAPERONE

chap·er·one or chap·er·on \ˈsha-pə-ˌrōn\

Origin of CHAPERONE

French chaperon, literally, hood, from Middle French, head covering, from chape

First Known Use: 1720

²chaperone

verb

: to be a chaperone to or for (someone or something)

chaperonedchaperon·ing

Full Definition of CHAPERONE

transitive verb

: escort

: to act as chaperone to or for <chaperone a dance> <chaperoning teenagers>

intransitive verb

: to act as a chaperone

— chap·er·on·age \-ˌrō-nij\ noun

See chaperone defined for English-language learners

Variants of CHAPERONE

chaperone or chaperon

First Known Use of CHAPERONE

1796

Related to CHAPERONE

Synonyms: attend, accompany (or chaperon), companion, company, convoy, escort, see, squire

CHAPERON Defined for Kids

¹chaperone

noun chap·er·one \ˈsha-pə-ˌrōn\

Definition of CHAPERONE for Kids

: a person who goes with and is responsible for a group of young people

Variants of CHAPERONE

chap·er·one or chap·er·on \ˈsha-pə-ˌrōn\

²chaperone

verb

chap·er·onedchap·er·on·ing

Definition of CHAPERONE for Kids

: to go with and supervise a group of young people : act as a chaperone <Several parents chaperoned the school dance.>

Variants of CHAPERONE

chaperone or chaperon

Medical Dictionary

chaperone

noun chap·er·one \ˈshap-ə-ˌrōn\

Medical Definition of CHAPERONE

: any of a class of proteins (as heat shock proteins) that facilitate the proper folding of proteins by binding to and stabilizing unfolded or partially folded proteins—called also chaperone protein, molecular chaperone