swagger stick

American  

noun

1. a short, batonlike stick, usually leather-covered, sometimes carried by army officers, soldiers, etc.

---

swagger stick British  

noun

1. a short cane or stick carried on occasion mainly by army officers

---

Etymology

Origin of swagger stick

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

Students were often assigned a military rank and awarded promotions, like the 13-year-old cadet major carrying a swagger stick in a 1930 ad for the Page Military Academy in Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026

But in many ways, the fact that Gen. Sharif was bowing out on time — and will pass his bamboo swagger stick to Bajwa in a formal military ceremony on Wednesday — mattered even more.

From Washington Post • Nov. 26, 2016

There he was, year after year, on those post-Christmas U.S.O. specials, with shrieking starlets and shirtless soldiers, swinging his golf club like a swagger stick.

From The New Yorker • Nov. 10, 2014

There he was - head held high, with a swagger stick under his arm, wearing his English riding pants, knee-high leather boots and tweed jacket.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 4, 2012

In his right hand he carried a swagger stick which occasionally he slapped against his left palm, punctuation marks for the thoughts that crowded and strutted invisibly within him.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy