quarterstaff
Americannoun
plural
quarterstaves, quarterstaffs-
a former English weapon consisting of a stout pole 6 to 8 feet (1.8 to 2.4 meters) long, tipped with iron.
-
exercise or fighting with this weapon.
noun
-
a stout iron-tipped wooden staff about 6ft long, formerly used in England as a weapon
-
the use of such a staff in fighting, sport, or exercise
Etymology
Origin of quarterstaff
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.
On NBC, an American Gladiator is a beefcake model in a unitard swinging his padded quarterstaff.
From Time Magazine Archive
The renowned Hercules always carried a quarterstaff, and was from thence called Claviger.
From The Tatler, Volume 1, 1899 by Aitken, George A.
A quarterstaff bout—a frantic, bloody sport revived from God only knew how many centuries before—was in progress there, matching a heavily muscled Nordic with a sandy bristle of hair against a swarthy, hairless Eurasian.
From Assignment's End by Aycock, Roger D.
A loaded quarterstaff, one of the two favourite weapons of the Tahitian brave; the javelin, or casting spear, was the other.
From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 14 (of 25) by Stevenson, Robert Louis
A quarterstaff, of that weight, is a fine weapon.
From Both Sides the Border A Tale of Hotspur and Glendower by Peacock, Ralph
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
