celt

¹ American  

[selt] / sɛlt /

noun

Archaeology.

1. an ax of stone or metal without perforations or grooves, for hafting.

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Celt ² American  

[kelt, selt] / kɛlt, sɛlt /

noun

1. a member of an Indo-European people now represented chiefly by the Irish, Gaels, Welsh, and Bretons.

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Celt. ³ American  

Or Celt

abbreviation

1. Celtic.

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Celt ¹ British  

/ sɛlt, kɛlt /

noun

1. a person who speaks a Celtic language

2. a member of an Indo-European people who in pre-Roman times inhabited Britain, Gaul, Spain, and other parts of W and central Europe

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celt ² British  

/ sɛlt /

noun

1. archaeol a stone or metal axelike instrument with a bevelled edge

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Etymology

Origin of celt¹

1705–15; < Late Latin *celtis chisel, found only in the ablative case celte (Vulgate, Job XIX, 24)

Origin of Celt²

1695–1705; < Latin Celtae (plural); in Greek Keltoí (plural)

Example Sentences

On June 4, during a break from working on the structure, he held a celt - a polished, cylindrical, foot-long piece of stone used as a woodworking tool by prehistoric native Americans.

From Washington Times • Jun. 13, 2020

“A celt is a kind of battle-axe,” said Arthur, surprising the magician with this piece of information more than he had been surprised for several generations.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

A celt was a sort of battle axe; sometimes made of bronze, sometimes of stone.

From A Reading Book in Irish History by Joyce, P. W.

Small wide bladed celt made of dark tufa—½.

From Ancient art of the province of Chiriqui, Colombia Sixth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1884-1885, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1888, pages 3-188 by Holmes, William Henry

When we get into the true Bronze Age, we find a complete and probably fairly rapid evolution of type from the flat celt to the final socketed form.

From The Bronze Age in Ireland by Coffey, George