/ sɔːd; NAmE sɔːrd/ noun
a weapon with a long metal blade and a handle :
to draw / sheathe a sword (= to take it out / put it into its cover)
•
IDIOMS
- put sb to the sword
- a / the sword of Damocles
- turn swords into ploughshares
—more at cross verb , double-edged , pen noun
••
WORD ORIGIN
Old English sw(e)ord , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch zwaard and German Schwert .