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machete

machete

66 5.7
A large strong knife with a wide blade that people use to cut plants or as a weapon
  • noun
  • /məˈʃɛti/
: machete
  • He used the machete to clear the thick vegetation in the garden.
  • cut with a machete
  • swing a machete
  • machetes and knives

And so it's machete in hand, you're hacking through.

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Examples

  • I ain't the only one carrying a machete around here.

  • Mixed in with chirping sonatas from high above is the constant thud of a machete chopping trees.

  • One brought a machete and then somebody told on him.

  • And he keeps his machete in the police car.

  • Of coconut vendors with machete in hand.

  • And we've got this big machete here.

  • As he positioned his machete to cut her hair, Berta opened her mouth and began to sing.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Your typical man struts around town with either a gun or a machete strapped to his leg.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • So we cut paths with machetes, scramble through thick underbrush, and wonder what we might be missing.

    Academic text (2010)
  • Digging with a woman's small machete, Aluta clears the soil away from the roots.

    Academic text (1991)

Synonyms

knife
vsmachete
  • NSFW
∞ 1.0

A tool with a sharp blade and handle used for cutting or as a weapon

is a specific large broad heavy cutting blade used for vegetation or combat
panga
vsmachete
  • South African
1 9.8

A large heavy knife with a wide blade used to cut thick plants or as a weapon

is the general term for that broad blade not limited to one region
matchet
vsmachete
  • Archaic
9.9

A large heavy knife like a machete used to cut plants or for protection

is the common name for that same large heavy cutting blade

How Big

sword
711 1.0
machete
66 5.7
cleaver
20 3.5
knife
  • NSFW
∞ 1.0
pocketknife
9 3.4

Surface Forms

machete singular
machetes plural

Etymology

Machete comes from Spanish and Portuguese and is related to machado, which means 'axe'. So a machete is like a strong, broad knife used like a small axe to cut plants or clear a path.