# sword

Pronunciation: US say "SORD" /sɔɹd/; UK say "SAWD" /sɔːd/

## Noun

1. A long bladed weapon with a grip and usually a pommel and crossguard forming a hilt, made to cut, stab, slash, or hack.
   - Simple: A long metal weapon with a sharp blade and a handle, used for cutting or stabbing.
   - _The fencer lowered his sword once the bout ended._
   - _Museum collections often include swords forged many centuries ago._
2. Military force or violence used to win power, govern, or make people obey, usually spoken of as the sword. *(literary)*
   - Simple: Fighting and violence used to win power, rule people, or make them obey.
   - _The empire was won by the sword and held together by fear._
   - _This time the rebels chose the ballot box over the sword._
3. One of the four suits in Spanish, Italian, and tarot card decks, or a single card of that suit.
   - Simple: A suit of cards in Spanish, Italian, or tarot decks, or one card from that suit.
   - _Three of the five cards she drew were swords, and the reader warned her of conflict ahead._
   - _Holding three swords, she felt confident about the hand._

## Verb

4. To stab or cut someone or something with a sword. *(rare)*
   - Simple: To hit, cut, or stab someone using a sword.

## Other meanings

- (noun) One of the end bars from which the moving frame, called the lay, of a hand loom is suspended.

## Origin

From Middle English sword, from Old English sweord, from Proto-West Germanic *swerd and Proto-Germanic *swerdą, possibly from a Proto-Indo-European root *seh₂w- meaning "sharp." It is related to Dutch zwaard, German Schwert, and the Scandinavian words such as Danish sværd and Swedish svärd.

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