# blade

Pronunciation: say "BLAYD" /bleɪd/

## Noun

1. The sharp-edged part of a knife, sword, razor, or similar tool that does the cutting.
   - Simple: The flat, sharp part of a knife or tool used for cutting.
   - _The knife's blade caught the light as she carved the roast._
   - _A nick in the razor's blade left a thin scratch on his cheek._
2. A sword or knife, especially one carried as a weapon.
   - Simple: A sword or large knife.
   - _The knight unsheathed his blade before the duel began._
   - _She collected antique blades from across the world._
3. The flat working part of something such as a propeller, oar, hockey stick, chisel, screwdriver, or skate.
   - Simple: The flat end of things like an oar, propeller, hockey stick, or skate.
   - _The propeller's blade had bent after striking a rock._
   - _Each oar blade pushed steadily against the current._
4. A flat bone of the body, especially the shoulder blade.
   - Simple: A flat bone, especially the one in your shoulder.
   - _The arrow lodged just below his right shoulder blade._
   - _She bruised the blade of her shoulder in the fall._
5. A single long, narrow leaf of grass or of a cereal plant.
   - Simple: The long, narrow leaf of grass or a grain plant.
   - _Dew clung to every blade of grass at dawn._
   - _Cattle grazed on the tender blades of young wheat._
6. The thin, flat part of a leaf, as distinct from the stalk that attaches it to the plant.
   - Simple: The thin, flat part of a leaf that joins to its stem.
   - _The leaf blade was broad and smooth, joined to a short petiole._
   - _In many ferns, the blade is divided into many small segments._
7. Short for razor blade. — Ellipsis of razor blade.
   - Simple: Short for razor blade. Use it when it is clear you mean the cutting part used for shaving.
   - _She unwrapped a new blade and slotted it into the handle._
   - _He nicked his chin when the old blade slipped._
8. The part of a key that goes into the lock, as opposed to the part you hold.
   - Simple: The flat part of a key that slides into a lock.
   - _A worn blade caused the key to stick in the lock._
   - _The locksmith measured the blade before cutting a duplicate._
9. A cut of beef taken from near the shoulder blade, forming part of the chuck.
   - Simple: A cut of beef from near the shoulder of the cow.
   - _The recipe called for a blade braised slowly in red wine._
   - _Butchers cut the blade from the front quarter of the animal._
12. A thin plate or sheet of material, such as foil.
   - Simple: A thin, flat sheet or layer of a material such as metal.
   - _The instrument used a fine blade of metal to register movement._
   - _Each blade of foil was pressed thin enough to see through._
13. A piece of prepared, sharp-edged stone, often flint, at least twice as long as it is wide.
   - Simple: A long, thin piece of sharp stone, such as flint, shaped to a cutting edge.
   - _Archaeologists recovered a flint blade beside the hearth._
   - _The site yielded dozens of stone blades struck from a single core._
14. A bulldozer or surface-grading machine with a mechanically adjustable blade set roughly across its line of travel.
   - Simple: A bulldozer or grading machine fitted with an adjustable pushing edge.
   - _The contractor sent a blade to grade the construction site._
   - _Operators ran the blade back and forth to flatten the surface._
15. On a boat, the rudder, daggerboard, or centerboard, each a flat board that extends down into the water.
   - Simple: The flat underwater part of a boat, such as a rudder, that steers or steadies it.
   - _The sailor raised the blade before the hull touched the sandbar._
   - _Weed tangled around the boat's blade and slowed it down._
16. One of a series of small plates forming the aperture or shutter of a camera.
   - Simple: One of the thin metal plates that open and shut to let light into a camera.
   - _The photographer cleaned each blade of the aperture with a soft brush._
   - _Worn shutter blades caused uneven exposure across the frame._
17. A curved artificial foot, shaped like an upside-down question mark, used by athletes who have had a leg amputated. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: A curved artificial foot that some athletes who have lost a leg use to run.
   - _She crossed the finish line on a blade designed for sprinting._
   - _Paralympic runners push off powerfully with their blades._
18. A thin, knife-like piton driven into narrow rock cracks for protection while climbing.
   - Simple: A thin metal spike that climbers hammer into narrow cracks in rock.
   - _He placed a blade where the crack was too thin for a cam._
   - _Aid climbers stacked several blades to pass the blank section._
19. Ellipsis of blade server. — Ellipsis of blade server.
   - Simple: Ellipsis of blade server. A slim computer that slides into a shared frame alongside others.
   - _Administrators can swap a failed blade without shutting down the rack._
   - _A single blade takes up far less space than a traditional tower server._
20. In phonetics, the section of the tongue immediately behind its tip, which shapes laminal consonants.
   - Simple: The flat part of the tongue just behind the tip, used to make certain speech sounds.
   - _In producing 's', the blade of the tongue approaches the alveolar ridge._
   - _Laminal sounds are formed with the blade rather than the very tip._
24. A disc throw that follows a tight, steeply angled curve through the air.
   - Simple: A frisbee throw that flies in a steep, sharp curve.
   - _She launched a blade that arced over the cup and dropped onto the open receiver._
   - _Defenders struggle to read blades because they fall so steeply._
25. One of the principal rafters that form the main framework of a roof.
   - Simple: One of the main slanted beams that hold up a roof.
   - _Restorers found that one blade had rotted near the eaves._
   - _The cruck frame rests on two curved blades meeting at the ridge._
26. A homosexual person, usually male. *(slang, US)*
   - Simple: A gay person, usually a man.
   - _Old letters suggest he was a blade, though he never said so openly._
   - _In that crowd, blades found acceptance long before the wider city did._
27. A district of a city commonly known as a center for prostitution. *(slang, US)*
   - Simple: A part of a city known for prostitution.
   - _She warned the newcomers to keep clear of the blade after dark._
   - _Police swept the city's blades during the crackdown._
28. A pure, resonant quality in singing, especially in a countertenor's voice.
   - Simple: A pure, ringing quality in a singer's voice.
   - _Critics admired the blade he brought to the Handel aria._
   - _Her tone lacked the blade that the role demanded._
30. Any of the large central and side plates of a sea turtle's carapace, valued as the source of the finest tortoiseshell.
   - Simple: One of the large plates on a sea turtle's shell that give the best tortoiseshell.
   - _A single blade could be heated and shaped into a fine comb._
   - _Traders graded the blades by clarity and color._

## Verb

10. To stab someone or something with a blade.
   - Simple: To stab someone with a knife or other sharp blade.
   - _Witnesses said the man would blade anyone who crossed him._
   - _The prisoner bladed a fellow inmate over an unpaid debt._
11. To travel or skate on rollerblades. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To skate using rollerblades.
   - _We used to blade together every summer evening._
   - _He bladed across the empty parking lot at dusk._
21. To fit or equip something with a blade.
   - Simple: To fit a cutting edge or blade onto something.
   - _The craftsman bladed the antique plane with fresh steel._
   - _Manufacturers blade these knives with high-carbon steel._
23. To deliberately cut a person, usually oneself, in order to draw blood. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To cut someone, usually yourself, on purpose so that they bleed.
   - _The veteran bladed himself discreetly during the main event._
   - _Promoters once expected stars to blade themselves for dramatic effect._
29. Of a plant such as grass or grain, to put forth or bear blades. *(literary)*
   - Simple: Of a plant, to grow or send up its leaves.
   - _The new grass bladed thickly across the meadow._
   - _Fields that blade by May promise an early harvest._

## Noun

22. A dashing, spirited young man. *(dated)*
   - Simple: A bold, lively young man who likes to show off.
   - _He fancied himself a blade, always first onto the dance floor._
   - _The local blades raced their horses down the lane._

## Other meanings

- (noun) In geometric algebra, the wedge product formed from one or more vectors, with k vectors giving a k-blade, a single vector a 1-blade and a scalar a 0-blade.

## Origin

This comes from Middle English 'blade', from Old English 'blæd' meaning 'leaf', which goes back through Proto-Germanic '*bladą' to a Proto-Indo-European root '*bʰleh₃-' meaning 'to thrive, bloom'. It is related to Dutch 'blad', German 'Blatt', and Irish 'bláth' ('flower').

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/blade (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).