scabbard
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of scabbard
1250–1300; Middle English scalburde, scauberge (compare Anglo-French escauberz, escauberge, Medieval Latin escauberca ) ≪ dissimilated variant of Old High German *skārberga sword-protection. See shear, harbor
Explanation
A scabbard is a sheath for a sword, dagger, or other type of knife. Some cooks wear their French knives in a scabbard so they'll be ready to chop no matter where they are in the kitchen. You’ve probably seen a scabbard in an older movie. The hero sheaths his sword in a long wooden, metal or leather scabbard hanging from his belt. The origins of the word, however, are not that manly. Scabbard comes from an old Germanic compound meaning "blade protector."
Vocabulary lists containing scabbard
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
ASVAB Word Knowledge
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Alchemist
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
A stunning jeweled dagger hilt and scabbard from Jahangir’s reign incorporate more than 2,000 diamonds, rubies and emeralds set in an intricate pattern in gold.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
Flashing his club as a sword, he targeted the hole as the bull and completed the routine by wiping the imagined blood off the blade and returning it to an invisible scabbard with a flourish.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2024
She carried the sword without its scabbard for the rest of the ceremony.
From BBC ● May 6, 2023
Oftentimes, a kirpan is blunt and even sewn into its sheath or scabbard.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 27, 2022
The Horned King saw the black scabbard and hesitated a moment, as if in fear.
From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander
Swords, scabbards, armor — weaponry and objects related to combat are plentiful in the show.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2025
The three swords that were still in their wooden scabbards were identified as Roman spatha, or long swords, while the fourth, shorter weapon was identified as a ring-pommel sword.
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2023
"This is a unique time capsule, whereby fragments of scrolls, coins from the Jewish Revolt, leather sandals, and now even swords in their scabbards, sharp as if they had only just been hidden away today."
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2023
A waiter entered the room carrying eight alarming-looking knives, sheathed in wooden scabbards decorated with mother-of-pearl inlays.
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 11, 2018
So later on, the ranchers hired men to patrol on horseback, carrying .30-30S in saddle scabbards.
From "Ceremony:" by Leslie Marmon Silko
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.
