cutlass
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of cutlass
1585–95; earlier coutelace < Middle French coutelas, equivalent to coutel knife ( French couteau ) (< Latin cultellus; see cultellus) + -as augmentative suffix; cognate with Italian coltellaccio big knife; cf. curtalax
Compare meaning
How does cutlass compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A cutlass is a type of saber, a slightly curved sword. Many sailors — and pirates — carried cutlasses on ships during the 17th century. The cutlass was considered a "naval sword" partly because it was extremely useful on board a ship. A sailor or pirate could use a cutlass to cut thick rope and wood, and its size made it safer in tight quarters than a longer sword might be. Although they weren't used much after the 18th century, the cutlass was still an official weapon of the U.S. Navy until 1949. The Latin root means "knife."
Vocabulary lists containing cutlass
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But her favorite car to drive is her first: a pink 1979 Oldsmobile Cutlass that she saved up for and bought on OfferUp for $4,000.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 23, 2026
“We don’t want to see somebody that’s got a ’91 Cutlass Ciera with 300,000 miles on it and using it every day to get back and forth to work and cheating the system.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026
Olds Transportation Museum in Lansing, Mich. He told them the Oldsmobile Cutlass was “the best-selling car in the United States from 1976 to 1983.”
From Washington Post • Mar. 16, 2023
“I’ll run five or six nostalgia Pro Stock shows with the Cutlass this year, but it will be a family affair,” Mr. Lawrence said.
From New York Times • Feb. 10, 2022
Moments later, her Cutlass disappears down the street, and I’m left in the dark, without a manager.
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
