shillelagh
/ʃɪˈleɪlə
/ /ʃɪˈleɪli/noun
A thick stick of blackthorn or oak used in Ireland, typically as a weapon.Our whacking shillelaghs came over their heads,...
- Ballybunion, for instance, has 36 holes in the dunes, but 18 of them are great and 18 are such that you couldn't persuade me to play them even with a shillelagh.
- You're as likely to get mugged and beaten in Ireland as anywhere else in Western Europe, and rest assured, you won't be beaten with a magical shillelagh.
Origin
Late 18th century: from the name of the town Shillelagh, in Co. Wicklow, Ireland.