broad arrow
Americannoun
-
a mark in the shape of a broad arrowhead, placed upon British government property.
-
Archery. an arrow having an expanded head.
-
Heraldry. pheon.
noun
-
a mark shaped like a broad arrowhead designating British government property and formerly used on prison clothing
-
an arrow with a broad head
Etymology
Origin of broad arrow
1350–1400; Middle English brod arwe
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Social significance marks some of the sculptures: one has the broad arrow of the British "Ban the Bomb" movement.
From Time Magazine Archive
On old guns of Henry VIII. and Elizabeth, we find the rose and crown, but no broad arrow; more frequently Elizabeth's bear her cipher.
From Notes and Queries, Number 180, April 9, 1853 A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc by Bell, George
There was a sharp struggle between rival claimants for the possession of the ship, but the Gordian knot was cut by the British Government which placed the "broad arrow" upon her.
From The Narrative of a Blockade-Runner by Wilkinson, John
"Why it looks like—it is—a broad arrow as I live:" and he went close and looked up at it.
From The Cloister and the Hearth A Tale of the Middle Ages by Reade, Charles
She put a broad arrow in her bow, and shot at it, but aimed too high, and so by misfortune the arrow smote Sir Launcelot deep in the thick of the thigh.
From Stories of King Arthur and His Knights Retold from Malory's "Morte dArthur" by Cutler, U. Waldo
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
