the.com/face guard
the polite lie between your skull and a 90-mph projectile.
means A protective barrier worn on or attached to equipment to shield the face from impact, debris, or injury, as in sports helmets, fencing masks, or industrial gear.
from A plain compound of two old English-rooted words: "face," which came into English from Old French "face" (built on Latin "facies," appearance or form), and "guard," also from Old French "garde," meaning to watch over or defend — itself related to the Germanic root behind "ward" and "warden." Put them side by side and you get exactly what it says: a thing that watches over the face. The pairing is functional rather than poetic, the kind of label that arrives whenever a sport or trade decides faces are worth protecting.
- hockey origin
- Jacques Plante's 1959 mask got him mocked, then copied
- fencing rule
- mesh must withstand 350 newtons of point pressure
- football evolution
- early players wore none, broken noses were routine
- sports word
- removing one illegally is a 15-yard penalty
nfl face mask rule — penalty in american football since 1956 for grabbing opponent's helmet facemask
hockey goalie cage — protective wire or composite guard worn by ice hockey goalies since the 1970s
lacrosse helmet visor — mandatory protective gear in ncaa and high school lacrosse since 2009