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Showing results for helve. Search instead for helves.
Synonyms

helve

American  
[helv] / hɛlv /

noun

  1. the handle of an ax, hatchet, hammer, or the like.


verb (used with object)

helved, helving
  1. to furnish with a helve.

helve British  
/ hɛlv /

noun

  1. the handle of a hand tool such as an axe or pick

"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

verb

  1. (tr) to fit a helve to (a tool)

"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

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of helve

before 900; Middle English; Old English h ( i ) elfe

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.

See Examples For:

Through centuries of trial & error many of man's simplest tools ?the ax helve, the plowshare, the ox yoke ?had achieved a utilitarian perfection of design.

From Time Magazine Archive

“Can a man not come back for an axe helve without finding his house a shambles?”

From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare

She disposed the ax to conceal it entirely beneath her long apron, her hand under the garment grasping the helve.

From The Flockmaster of Poison Creek by Ivory, P. V. E. (Percy Van Eman)

He stated to the mechanic that he might be here for several days; at this juncture, it occurred to him that he had forgotten that axe helve which Mrs. Crump had demanded especially.

From The Mesa Trail by Bedford-Jones, H.

The wrought-iron shoe of a horse occurs to us, perhaps a ship’s anchor, a string-bow or an axe helve.

From Making a Fireplace by Saylor, Henry H. (Henry Hodgman)

They cut and shaved axe-handles and helved them.

From The Drama of the Forests Romance and Adventure by Heming, Arthur Henry Howard

The father and Da'Be took their stand face to face on either side of a tree, and their axes, helved with birch, began to swing in rhythm.

From Maria Chapdelaine by Blake, W. H.

Carpenter and others at work on shallop, getting out stock for a new shallop, helving tools, making articles needed, etc.

From The Mayflower and Her Log; July 15, 1620-May 6, 1621 — Complete by Ames, Azel

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