adze

or adz

[ adz ]

/ ædz /

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See synonyms for: adze / adzes on Thesaurus.com

noun

an axlike tool, for dressing timbers roughly, with a curved, chisel-like steel head mounted at a right angle to the wooden handle.

verb (used with object), adzed, adz·ing.

to dress or shape (wood) with an adze.

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Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of adze

First recorded before 900; Middle English ad(e)se, Old English adesa; of obscure origin

Words nearby adze

Adygei, Adygei Republic, adynamia, adytum, adz, adze, Adzhar Autonomous Republic, adzuki, adzuki bean, ae, -aea

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use adze in a sentence

Adze, Adz, adz, n. a carpenter's tool consisting of a thin arched blade with its edge at right angles to the handle.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)|Various
They had not been an hour on shore before one man had an axe stolen from him and another an adze.
A Voyage to the South Sea|William Bligh
The crack of the inspector's revolver was heard once, but the fugitive had turned like lightning and hurled his adze.
The Incendiary|W. A. (William Augustine) Leahy
This adze blade is of jade, and I am told that it represents "the price of a fat man for cannibal purposes."
The Harmsworth Magazine, Vol. 1, 1898-1899, No. 6|Various

Then a sharp tool was seen to descend in the opening—apparently an adze—and the hound's head sunk under the blow.
The Incendiary|W. A. (William Augustine) Leahy

British Dictionary definitions for adze

adze

US adz

/ (ædz) /

noun

a heavy hand tool with a steel cutting blade attached at right angles to a wooden handle, used for dressing timber

Word Origin for adze

Old English adesa

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

adze

or adz

Origin of adze

Words nearby adze

Words related to adze

How to use adze in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for adze

US adz

Word Origin for adze