arbalest

or ar·ba·list

[ahr-buh-list]

noun

a powerful medieval crossbow with a steel bow, used to shoot stones, metal balls, arrows, etc.

Origin of arbalest

before 1100; < Old French arbaleste < Old Provençal < Late Latin arcuballista (see arc, ballista); replacing Middle English, late Old English arblast < Old French

Related formsar·ba·lest·er, ar·ba·list·er

[ahr-buh-lis-ter] /ˈɑr bəˌlɪs tər/, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for arbalist

Historical Examples of arbalist

An arbalist or cross-bow man; also the corruption of alabaster.
The Sailor's Word-Book
William Henry Smyth
In the meantime here is Wat with his arbalist and a bolt in his girdle.
Sir Nigel
Arthur Conan Doyle
Shoots excellently with the bow or arbalist, rides, swims, is a master of fence with the small sword.
The Romance of Leonardo da Vinci
Dmitry Sergeyevich Merezhkovsky
He had brought his arbalist to his shoulder, when a commotion arose among the onlookers.
The Romance of Leonardo da Vinci
Dmitry Sergeyevich Merezhkovsky
Then may come the English long-bow (far more rapid in its fire191 than the arbalist), and the day of the infantry will return.
Life on a Mediaeval Barony
William Stearns Davis

British Dictionary definitions for arbalist

arbalest

arbalist

noun

a large medieval crossbow, usually cocked by mechanical means

Word Origin for arbalest

C11: from Old French arbaleste, from Late Latin arcuballista, from Latin arcus bow + ballista

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

Word Origin and History for arbalist

arbalest

"crossbow," c.1300, from Old French arbaleste "large crossbow with a crank" (12c., Modern French arbalète), from Vulgar Latin arbalista, from Late Latin arcuballista "catapult," from Latin arcus "bow" (see arc (n.)) + ballista "machine for throwing projectiles" (see ballistic). German armbrust is from the same French word but mangled by folk etymology.