machete

American  

[muh-shet-ee, -chet-ee] / məˈʃɛt i, -ˈtʃɛt i /

noun

1. a large heavy knife used especially in Latin American countries in cutting sugarcane and clearing underbrush and as a weapon.

2. a tarpon, Elops affinis, of the eastern Pacific Ocean, having an elongated, compressed body.

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machete British  

/ -ˈtʃeɪ-, məˈʃɛtɪ /

noun

1. a broad heavy knife used for cutting or as a weapon, esp in parts of Central and South America

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Etymology

Origin of machete

First recorded in 1575–1600; < Spanish, equivalent to mach(o) “mallet” ( mace ¹ ) + -ete noun suffix ( -et ( def. ) )

Compare meaning

How does machete compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• kukri vs. machete

Example Sentences

On Saturday morning, men with machetes hacked through branches as thick as their arms, clearing patches of the road where traffic jams were at a standstill.

From BBC

In Cuba, residents of the country's second-largest city Santiago de Cuba worked with machetes to clear streets buried in debris.

From BBC

He asked: "Did AR have any remote reason - as far as you can really tell - or his family to be ordering machetes?"

From BBC

In March, Victoria announced legislative changes to its Control of Weapons Act, making it illegal to sell or possess machetes, with the new law to start in September.

From BBC

The celery harvest in California’s Salinas Valley has been described as “ballet with a machete.”

From Science Magazine

Related Words

• blade
• knife
• sickle