blade

[ bleyd ]

/ bleɪd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR blade ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the flat cutting part of a sword, knife, etc.

a sword, rapier, or the like.

a similar part, as of a mechanism, used for clearing, wiping, scraping, etc.: the blade of a windshield wiper; the blade of a bulldozer.

the arm of a propeller or other similar rotary mechanism, as an electric fan or turbine.

Botany.

the leaf of a plant, especially of a grass or cereal.
the broad part of a leaf, as distinguished from the stalk or petiole.

the metal part of an ice skate that comes into contact with the ice.

a thin, flat part of something, as of an oar or a bone: shoulder blade.

Archaic. a dashing, swaggering, or jaunty young man: a gay blade from the nearby city.

a swordsman.

Phonetics.

the foremost and most readily flexible portion of the tongue, including the tip and implying the upper and lower surfaces and edges.
the upper surface of the tongue directly behind the tip, lying beneath the alveolar ridge when the tongue is in a resting position.

the elongated hind part of a fowl's single comb.

Nearby words

bladdernut, bladderpod, bladderwort, bladderwrack, bladdery, blade, blade grader, blade slap, blade-shearing, bladebone, bladed

Origin of blade

before 1000; Middle English; Old English blæd blade of grass; cognate with Dutch blad, Old Norse blath, German Blatt; akin to blow³

Related forms

blade·less, adjectivemul·ti·blade, nounun·blade, verb (used with object), un·blad·ed, un·blad·ing.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for blade

Despite a dizzying number of women coming forward against her husband, Camille Cosby refuses to sharpen her blade of vengeance.
Why Didn’t Camille Dump Bill Cosby?|Amanda Marcotte|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The labels included a picture of a butterfly on a blade of grass.
Whole Foods' Anti-GMO Swindle|Michael Schulson|September 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Soon after 1pm, police were called to reports of a man with a blade in the street.
London Woman Beheaded by Machete-Wielding 'Madman'|Nico Hines|September 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Every flower, every blade of grass, every tree had to be created in CG.
James Cameron Dives into the Ocean's Abyss|Andrew Romano|July 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST

I remember being worried by his view of human nature, in A Blade of Light and Hard Rain Falling.
Don Carpenter Was a Novelist Both Lacerating and Forgiving|Louis B. Jones|July 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Mr. Langer nodded more decisively than before and plucked a second blade of grass.
The Boy Scouts of Lakeville High|Leslie W. Quirk
Because, for three inches of that blade in my heart, I would bless you through the eternities.
The Black Douglas|S. R. Crockett
The nurture of these years is as silent as that of the dewdrop upon the blade of grass, but it is as real.
The Unfolding Life|Antoinette Abernethy Lamoreaux
Dr. Gordon had told him that only an occasional spot on a blade will work.
The Blue Ghost Mystery|Harold Leland Goodwin
"Everything orderly and sanitary and spick and span—not a blade of grass out of place," was Polly's comment.
The Turtles of Tasman|Jack London

British Dictionary definitions for blade

blade

/ (bleɪd) /

noun

the part of a sharp weapon, tool, etc, that forms the cutting edge

(plural) Australian and NZ hand shears used for shearing sheep

the thin flattish part of various tools, implements, etc, as of a propeller, turbine, etc

the flattened expanded part of a leaf, sepal, or petal

the long narrow leaf of a grass or related plant

the striking surface of a bat, club, stick, or oar

the metal runner on an ice skate

archaeol a long thin flake of flint, possibly used as a tool

the upper part of the tongue lying directly behind the tip

archaic a dashing or swaggering young man

short for shoulder blade

a poetic word for a sword, swordsman

Derived Forms

bladed, adjective

Word Origin for blade

Old English blæd; related to Old Norse blath leaf, Old High German blat, Latin folium leaf

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

Science definitions for blade

blade

[ blād ]

The expanded part of a leaf or petal. Also called lamina See more at leaf.
The leaf of grasses and similar plants.

A stone tool consisting of a slender, sharp-edged, unserrated flake that is at least twice as long as it is wide. Blade tools were developed late in the stone tool tradition, after core and flake tools, and were probably used especially as knives.

blade

noun

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Origin of blade

Related forms

Examples from the Web for blade

British Dictionary definitions for blade

blade

noun

Derived Forms

Word Origin for blade

Science definitions for blade

blade