plowshare

noun

plow·​share ˈplau̇-ˌsher 

: a part of a plow that cuts the furrow

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

For bread, all vanished into an emptiness thirsty as old iron, a plowshare Left in a fallow field for decades beside a snakeskin wound through the eyehole Of a steer’s skull. —The New Yorker, 17 Jan. 2022

The back yard, occasionally used as a party space, was bare, save for a medieval-style plowshare. —Ian Volner, The New Yorker, 22 Nov. 2021

During a brief window during the Eisenhower era, the US government still seriously explored the peaceful uses of the atom—a program known as PLOWSHARE, after the Biblical phrase about beating swords into plowshares. —Garrett M. Graff, WIRED, 26 Aug. 2019

What was once a great swords-to-plowshares example of former rivals sharing technology is now a point of tension—and Russian leverage. —Joe Pappalardo, Popular Mechanics, 17 Apr. 2018

Trade wars, like all wars, empower government as plowshares are beaten into swords. —Phil Gramm And, WSJ, 23 Mar. 2018

But across the Middle East, and among the great powers, there's little sign of the political will needed to turn swords into plowshares. —Tim Lister, CNN, 21 Oct. 2017

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Word History

Etymology

Middle English ploughshare, from plough plow + schare plowshare — more at share entry 3

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

plowshare

noun

plow·​share -ˌshe(ə)r 

-ˌsha(ə)r

: the part of a plow that cuts the earth