sword
Americannoun
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swords
plural
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a weapon having various forms but consisting typically of a long, straight or slightly curved blade, sharp-edged on one or both sides, with one end pointed and the other fixed in a hilt or handle.
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this weapon as the symbol of military power, punitive justice, authority, etc..
The pen is mightier than the sword.
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a cause of death or destruction.
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war, combat, slaughter, or violence, especially military force or aggression.
to perish by the sword.
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Military. Sword. the code name for one of the five D-Day invasion beaches on France's Normandy coast, assaulted by British forces.
noun
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a thrusting, striking, or cutting weapon with a long blade having one or two cutting edges, a hilt, and usually a crosspiece or guard
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such a weapon worn on ceremonial occasions as a symbol of authority
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something resembling a sword, such as the snout of a swordfish
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to argue or fight
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violence or power, esp military power
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death; destruction
to put to the sword
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of sword
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English sweord; cognate with Dutch zwaard, German Schwert, Old Norse sverth
Explanation
A sword is a weapon with a long, sharp, metal blade. If you want to dress up as a knight for Halloween, you'll definitely need a sword — and maybe a suit of armor. Swords evolved from daggers, which, like knives, have two sharp edges instead of just one. Some time during the Bronze Age, daggers became longer and longer, eventually being classified as swords. These long, sharp weapons were used by soldiers on battlefields, and for self-defense and dueling. Sword can be traced back to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to cut or pierce."
Vocabulary lists containing sword
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:
The last update showed a photo of a sword.
From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026
Ghanbari’s video appears in lieu of the gloves themselves, and Amini’s original digital rendering of the glass sword is much more detailed and intricate than the comparatively “low-res” version on view.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
Our water system’s decentralized, fragmented nature, perhaps a bit like our electoral system, is a double-edged sword, inasmuch as its vulnerabilities are atomized—at least a single hacker can’t contaminate all the water in the country.
From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026
"Fasting is his last resort in the place of the sword," Gandhi wrote, external in 1948, on the eve of his last fast.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
As the berserker ripped his sword out of the splintered wood, Samir and I scooted past him, back into the heart of the spicers’ district.
From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri
No dragons, of course, but plenty of political conniving, clashing swords and last-minute escapes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
Elsewhere are splendid cabinets with mother-of-pearl inlay, gorgeous enamel accessories, plush velvet textiles and engraved iron swords.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
"For now, people are sharpening their swords and firming up their positions," auto analyst Stefan Bratzel of the Centre of Automotive Management told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
But this was not the first time Uefa has crossed swords with Fifa.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
They will give us food from their recent harvest in exchange for our copper, hatchets, swords, and muskets.
From "Blood on the River" by Elisa Carbone
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.
