machete

noun

ma·​chete mə-ˈshe-tē How to pronounce machete (audio)
-ˈche-;
-ˈshet
: a large heavy knife used for cutting sugarcane and underbrush and as a weapon

Examples of machete in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web And the man was already chopping away erratically with a large machete! Nick Caruso, TVLine, 2 Oct. 2024 The night before, 27-year-old runner Edith Muthoni was murdered with a machete in Nairobi, and her boyfriend was detained. Harriet Marsden, The Week Uk, theweek, 16 Sep. 2024 Come the actual holiday season, the one where an intruder brings presents and not a machete, Shudder will debut a brand new Ghoul log. Tony Maglio, IndieWire, 1 Oct. 2024 The sheriff said the machete allegedly used in the attack had been recovered and that the parents of Ozment had been cooperative. Emily Palmer, Peoplemag, 26 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for machete 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'machete.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Spanish

First Known Use

1575, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of machete was in 1575

Dictionary Entries Near machete

Cite this Entry

“Machete.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/machete. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

machete

noun
ma·​chete mə-ˈshet-ē How to pronounce machete (audio)
-ˈchet-ē;
mə-ˈshet
: a large heavy knife used especially for cutting sugarcane and underbrush and as a weapon
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!