cutlass
noun
cut·lass ˈkət-ləs 
1
: a short curving sword formerly used by sailors on warships
2
: machete
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The pipe’s walls, between 400 and 600 feet long, reach a vertiginous 22 feet, and its edges are cutlass sharp, leaving little to the eye but a cleaved sky. 
Nick Remsen, Vogue, 11 Feb. 2022 One, a nurse once driven from his home by Boko Haram, who lost everything but had found refuge in the estate, has started sleeping with a cutlass under his bed. New York Times, 23 Sep. 2021 Marse, where the picong sharp like cutlass and cutting politician down to size and making fun of everything that taking itself too serious. M Nourbese Philip, Harper's BAZAAR, 16 Feb. 2021 The original had a leather-washer handle and a D-ring guard like a cutlass. David E. Petzal, Field & Stream, 16 Feb. 2019 Creepy Jason’s full-back tattoo depicted a swashbuckling femme fatale, complete with cutlass and pistol, pirate hat, belts and, of course, an eyepatch. Catalina Righter, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, 25 Sep. 2019 The waving of cutlasses in the narrow waters between Arabia and Iran was the moment when two different and competing approaches to Iran between Western allies crossed. Sam Kiley, CNN, 11 July 2019 All pirates start with a relatively beefy collection of items, including weapons (pistol, sniper rifle, cutlass), utilitarian items (compass, shovel, bucket), and goofy stuff (beer mug, pair of musical instruments). Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, 30 Jan. 2018 There’s a Pirate Gallery and a Western Room packed with mannequins baring cutlasses and six-guns. Vincent Crampton, OrlandoSentinel.com, 6 May 2018 See More
Nick Remsen, Vogue, 11 Feb. 2022 One, a nurse once driven from his home by Boko Haram, who lost everything but had found refuge in the estate, has started sleeping with a cutlass under his bed. New York Times, 23 Sep. 2021 Marse, where the picong sharp like cutlass and cutting politician down to size and making fun of everything that taking itself too serious. M Nourbese Philip, Harper's BAZAAR, 16 Feb. 2021 The original had a leather-washer handle and a D-ring guard like a cutlass. David E. Petzal, Field & Stream, 16 Feb. 2019 Creepy Jason’s full-back tattoo depicted a swashbuckling femme fatale, complete with cutlass and pistol, pirate hat, belts and, of course, an eyepatch. Catalina Righter, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, 25 Sep. 2019 The waving of cutlasses in the narrow waters between Arabia and Iran was the moment when two different and competing approaches to Iran between Western allies crossed. Sam Kiley, CNN, 11 July 2019 All pirates start with a relatively beefy collection of items, including weapons (pistol, sniper rifle, cutlass), utilitarian items (compass, shovel, bucket), and goofy stuff (beer mug, pair of musical instruments). Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, 30 Jan. 2018 There’s a Pirate Gallery and a Western Room packed with mannequins baring cutlasses and six-guns. Vincent Crampton, OrlandoSentinel.com, 6 May 2018 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle French coutelas, augmentative of coutel knife, from Latin cultellus, diminutive of culter knife, plowshare
First Known Use
1584, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
cutlass
noun
cut·lass ˈkət-ləs
: a short heavy curved sword
cutlass
noun
as in rapier
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- rapier
- scimitar
- saber
- broadsword
- sabre
- sword
- steel
- smallsword
- blade
- brand