scythe

1 of 2

noun

ˈsīṯẖ  ˈsī 

: an implement used for mowing grass, grain, or other crops and composed of a long curving blade fastened at an angle to a long handle

Illustration of scythe

scythe

2 of 2

verb

scythed; scything

intransitive verb

: to use a scythe

transitive verb

: to cut with or as if with a scythe

scything cornstalks

Examples of scythe in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Meanwhile, there are already signs that Congress is racing to shield the Orion and its super-rocket from the White House scythes aimed at NASA. —Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025

Lemon cucumbers were $1 each and looked similar to Asian pears, while Armenian cucumbers were $7 a pound and, measuring 1.5 feet each, resembled green scythes poking out of produce bags. —Miguel Otárola, Denver Post, 20 Aug. 2025

Verb

If their press from the front fails, teams can scythe through them with few passes. —Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2025

President Trump is intent on mowing down the remaining restrictions on executive power, and a series of cases awaiting the Supreme Court could scythe through many of the few remaining authorities Congress keeps for itself. —Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 30 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English sithe, from Old English sīthe; akin to Old English sagu saw — more at saw

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

circa 1580, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Rhymes for scythe

• blithe
• lithe
• tithe
• writhe
• wythe

Kids Definition

scythe

noun

ˈsīt͟h,

sī

: a tool that has a curved blade on a long curved handle and is used for mowing grass or grain by hand