swordplay

noun

sword·​play ˈsȯrd-ˌplā How to pronounce swordplay (audio)
1
: the art or skill of wielding a sword especially in fencing
2
: an exhibition of swordplay
swordplayer noun

Examples of swordplay in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Director Ang Lee makes great use of her skills to create the kind of onscreen swordplay that's the stuff of legends. Chris Snellgrove, EW.com, 23 Mar. 2023 Director Richard Lester's The Three Musketeers (1973) and The Four Musketeers (1974) is the definitive version, showcasing plenty of campy slapstick humor, light political intrigue, and classic Hollywood swashbuckling swordplay. Ars Staff, Ars Technica, 25 Dec. 2023 From there, Starlux created glowing swordplay games, versions of hide-and-seek and Sardines, glowing treasure hunts. Shannon Sollitt, The Salt Lake Tribune, 16 Sep. 2023 Ahsoka stakes her claim to her own series with a dazzling display of white-hot swordplay. Ken Makin, The Christian Science Monitor, 25 Aug. 2023 Romance, comedy, intrigue, fascinating period work and a little bit of swordplay. Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 15 June 2023 The annual festival offers a parade (10 a.m. Saturday), archery tournaments, dancing in the streets, plenty of live entertainment, and stunts, swordplay, fencing, clowns, magicians, and alchemists. oregonlive, 12 July 2023 But they weren’t always helped by the staging, particularly when sophomoric swordplay was involved. Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2023 Today the musical, written by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe, is remembered as one of the last of Broadway’s Golden Age shows, but its traditional narrative — Arthurian legend with all of its romance, politics, swordplay and sorcery — has never quite clicked. Michael Paulson, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2023

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

Word History

First Known Use

1602, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of swordplay was in 1602

Dictionary Entries Near swordplay

Cite this Entry

“Swordplay.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/swordplay. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

swordplay

noun
sword·​play -ˌplā How to pronounce swordplay (audio)
: the art or skill of using a sword especially in fencing
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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