kris

American  

[krees] / kris /

Sometimes kriss,

noun

1. a short sword or heavy dagger with a wavy blade, used by the Malays.

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kris British  

/ krɪs /

noun

1. Also called: crease.   creese.  a Malayan and Indonesian stabbing or slashing knife with a scalloped edge

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Etymology

Origin of kris

First recorded in 1570–80; from Malay kəris (spelling keris )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

kris

Paulina had to decide whether to take her case to the American justice system or go through a traditional Romani tribunal, called a kris.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2023

Leaders will also receive a traditional kris dagger, a distinctive asymmetrical knife usually between 11 and 14 inches long with a wavy blade.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 10, 2022

Her sword is reminiscent of the Indonesian kris.

From The Verge ● Mar. 5, 2021

During the sultan’s time, Pesarean was famous for the manufacture of Javanese daggers, known as kris.

From National Geographic ● May 31, 2016

Besides that weapon the Mindanao uses lance, kris, and shield, as do the other nations.

From The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 - Volume 40 of 55 1690-1691 Explorations by Early Navigators, Descriptions of the Islands and Their Peoples, Their History and Records of the Catholic Missions, as Related in Contemporaneous Books and Manuscripts, Showing the Political, Economic, Commercial and Religious Conditions of Those Islands from Their Earliest Relations with European Nations to the Close of the Nineteenth Century by Emma Helen Blair

Related Words

• blade
• dagger
• saber