knobkerrie

[ nob-ker-ee ]

/ ˈnɒbˌkɛr i /

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noun

a short, heavy wooden club with a knob on one end, used especially by native peoples of South Africa for striking and throwing.

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Origin of knobkerrie

1835–45; <Afrikaans knopkierie, equivalent to knopknob + kierie, said to be <Khoikhoi kirri, keeri stick

Words nearby knobkerrie

knobbling roll, knobbly, knobby, knobcone pine, knobhead, knobkerrie, knob latch, knob lock, knock, knockabout, knock back

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use knobkerrie in a sentence

Confronting him was a big Zulu, equally muscular, and armed with a formidable knobkerrie and a small shield.
A Frontier Mystery|Bertram Mitford
He was armed with nothing but a knobkerrie, with which he struck and parried with lightning-like rapidity.
The Luck of Gerard Ridgeley|Bertram Mitford
His left hand bore his assegais and knobkerrie beneath the great dappled ox-hide shield; and in his right a yellow walking-staff.
The Story of Baden-Powell|Harold Begbie
In the right hand he held his only weapon, a kind of short but deadly knobkerrie, while his left hand rested upon his naked knee.
The Story of the Zulu Campaign|Waller Ashe

They had been armed with muskets, and each carried a heavy knobkerrie.
The Curse of Carne's Hold|G. A. Henty

British Dictionary definitions for knobkerrie

knobkerrie

knobstick (ˈnɒbˌstɪk)

/ (ˈnɒbˌkɛrɪ) /

noun

a stick with a round knob at the end, used as a club or missile by South African tribesmen

Word Origin for knobkerrie

C19: from Afrikaans knopkierie, from knop knob, from Middle Dutch cnoppe + kierie stick, from Khoikhoi kīrri

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