rapier

[ rey-pee-er ]

/ ˈreɪ pi ər /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for rapier on Thesaurus.com

noun

a small sword, especially of the 18th century, having a narrow blade and used for thrusting.

a longer, heavier sword, especially of the 16th and 17th centuries, having a double-edged blade and used for slashing and thrusting.

COMPARE MEANINGS

Click for a side-by-side comparison of meanings. Use the word comparison feature to learn the differences between similar and commonly confused words.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of rapier

1545–55; <Middle French (espee) rapiere literally, rasping (sword); see rape³

OTHER WORDS FROM rapier

ra·pi·ered, adjective

Words nearby rapier

rapidly advancing juvenile periodontitis, rapido, rapids, rapid transit, rapid transit chess, rapier, rapine, rapini, rapist, rap jumping, rap music

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use rapier in a sentence

Rapier shopped the script around, but thankfully no one wanted to pick it up.
The 11 Worst Sequel Ideas to Come out of Hollywood|Chancellor Agard|November 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST
A rapier and a dagger found on the Thames foreshore show us that swordfights routinely broke out on the streets of London.
This Week’s Hot Reads: Sept. 30, 2013|Thomas Flynn, Jimmy So|September 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
A leather swordbelt, gold-embroidered at the edges, carried a long steel-halted rapier in a leather scabbard chaped with steel.
St. Martin's Summer|Rafael Sabatini
As you are doubtless aware, between civilians the small-sword, the rapier and the pistol are what are usually employed.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills

Half frantic, I dashed forward, snatching as I did so a rapier from the wall, the only weapon handy.
Uncanny Tales|Various
But the next moment he was on his feet, his rapier firmly gripped once more, for all that his arm still felt a trifle numbed.
St. Martin's Summer|Rafael Sabatini
Routledge, with a studio in Rome, and having been educated at a German university, is familiar with the use of the rapier.
The Autobiography of a Play|Bronson Howard

British Dictionary definitions for rapier

rapier

/ (ˈreɪpɪə) /

noun

a long narrow two-edged sword with a guarded hilt, used as a thrusting weapon, popular in the 16th and 17th centuries

a smaller single-edged 18th-century sword, used principally in France

Derived forms of rapier

rapier-like, adjective

Word Origin for rapier

C16: from Old French espee rapiere, literally: rasping sword; see rasp 1

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

rapier

COMPARE MEANINGS

Origin of rapier

OTHER WORDS FROM rapier

Words nearby rapier

Words related to rapier

How to use rapier in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for rapier

Derived forms of rapier

Word Origin for rapier