cudgel

[ kuhj-uhl ]
See synonyms for cudgel on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a short, thick stick used as a weapon; club.

verb (used with object),cudg·eled, cudg·el·ing, or (especially British) cudg·elled, cudg·el·ling.
  1. to strike with a cudgel; beat.

Idioms about cudgel

  1. cudgel one's brains, to try to comprehend or remember: I cudgeled my brains to recall her name.

  2. take up the cudgels, to come to the defense or aid of someone or something.

Origin of cudgel

1
before 900; Middle English cuggel,Old English cycgel; akin to German Kugel ball

Other words from cudgel

  • cudg·el·er; especially British, cud·gel·ler, noun
  • un·cudg·eled, adjective
  • un·cudg·elled, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use cudgel in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cudgel

cudgel

/ (ˈkʌdʒəl) /


noun
  1. a short stout stick used as a weapon

  2. take up the cudgels (often foll by for or on behalf of) to join in a dispute, esp to defend oneself or another

verb-els, -elling or -elled or US -els, -eling or -eled
  1. (tr) to strike with a cudgel or similar weapon

  2. cudgel one's brains to think hard about a problem

Origin of cudgel

1
Old English cycgel; related to Middle Dutch koghele stick with knob

Derived forms of cudgel

  • cudgeller, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012