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backsword

[bak-sawrd, -sohrd]
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noun
  1. a sword with only one sharp edge; broadsword.
  2. (formerly) a cudgel having a basket hilt, used in fencing exhibitions.
  3. a backswordman.
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Origin of backsword

First recorded in 1590–1600; back1 + sword
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

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Examples from the Web for backsword

Historical Examples

  • My backsword play hath been thought well of by stout men of war.

    Micah Clarke

    Arthur Conan Doyle

  • Backsword play: the game of single-stick, or fencing with cudgels.

    Tom Brown at Rugby

    Thomas Hughes

British Dictionary definitions for backsword

backsword

noun
  1. another name for broadsword
  2. Also called: backswordsman a person who uses the backsword
  3. a fencing stick with a basket-like protective hilt
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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