# chapeau

> English word · Noun · IPA /ʃæˈpəʊ/ · frequency rank #72,177

## Definitions
1. A hat.
2. A cap of maintenance.
3. The mass of grape solids that floats on the surface during the fermentation of wine.
4. The text at the start of a numbered section of a legal document that appears directly beside the section number, ahead of any numbered subsections.
5. A passage of introductory text appearing in a treaty that broadly defines its principles, objectives, and background.

## Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French chappeau. The interjection is after Modern French chapeau in similar use, originally short for chapeau bas.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/chapeau