bayonet

[bey-uh-nit, -net, bey-uh-net]

noun

1. a daggerlike steel weapon that is attached to or at the muzzle of a gun and used for stabbing or slashing in hand-to-hand combat.

2. a pin projecting from the side of an object, as the base of a flashbulb or camera lens, for securing the object in a bayonet socket.

verb (used with object)

bayoneted, bayonetted, bayoneting, bayonetting. 

1. to kill or wound with a bayonet.

bayonet

/ ˈbeɪənɪt /

noun

1. a blade that can be attached to the muzzle of a rifle for stabbing in close combat

2. a type of fastening in which a cylindrical member is inserted into a socket against spring pressure and turned so that pins on its side engage in slots in the socket

verb

1. (tr) to stab or kill with a bayonet

Word History and Origins

Origin of bayonet¹

1605–15; < French baïonnette, after Bayonne in France (where the weapon was first made or used); -ette

Word History and Origins

Origin of bayonet¹

C17: from French baïonnette , from _Bayonne where it originated

Example Sentences

Officers ordered their men to fix their bayonets and, if ordered to shoot, to “aim to kill.”

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In fact, the French more or less conquered Southern California, not by the bayonet but by the corkscrew.

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Eight machine gun vehicle mounts, seven freestanding machine gun tripods, medical equipment, 40 pairs of binoculars and 18 bayonets also went missing from the facility, police said.

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When you see people attacking the Capitol with crosses used as bayonets, they are showing you the lethal fruit of their faith.

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Those troops were issued bayonets, though they didn’t display them.

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