saber

noun sa·ber \ ˈsā-bər \

variants: or sabre

|Updated on: 13 Aug 2018

Definition of saber

1 : a cavalry sword with a curved blade, thick back, and guard

2 a : a light fencing or dueling sword having an arched guard that covers the back of the hand and a tapering flexible blade with a full cutting edge along one side and a partial cutting edge on the back at the tip — compare épée, ⁴foil

b : the sport of fencing with the saber

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Recent Examples of saber from the Web

In the Lego set, the mammoth and saber-toothed cat look alive.

— alessandra potenza, The Verge, "Digging mammoths in the Arctic isn’t as pretty and sci-fi as this new Lego set suggests," 21 May 2018
Brandish your light sabers and leave a trail of pastel rose petals, astro babes.

— bess matassa, Teen Vogue, "Weekly Horoscopes July 16-22," 13 July 2018
From his perch atop the shoulders of his mother’s boyfriend, Kai Oliver raised his red, white and blue light saber in a patriotic en garde, prepared to joust with the Washington Monument.

— reis thebault, Washington Post, "Fourth of July celebrations more meaningful, worrisome for some Americans," 4 July 2018
Her belt pierces like a saber, mustering a force that could part seas.

— lily janiak, San Francisco Chronicle, "‘Shesus’ lives — and rocks — in Ray of Light’s ‘Superstar’," 19 May 2018
Among epee, foil and saber, which is the most difficult to master?

— marvin pave, BostonGlobe.com, "Brandeis fencing coach Bill Shipman looks back on his career," 27 Apr. 2018
Abigayle Weaver, director of bands at Ramona High, said the school’s Winter Guard season will culminate with a performance with sabers, flags and rifles.

— julie gallant, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Ramona Winter Guard wins division championship," 18 Apr. 2018
That’s any type of arms—throwing stars, a light saber, a baseball bat with barbed wire.

— jason johnson, The Root, "Why Can’t Getting a Gun Be Like Getting a Driver’s License? A Conversation With NRA TV’s Colion Noir," 5 Apr. 2018
During the Clinton administration, the landmark disarmament deal known as the Agreed Framework was hatched in October 1994 and ended months of saber-rattling after Pyongyang withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

— john hudson, Washington Post, "Compared with Trump, previous presidents extracted more concessions from N. Korea, experts say," 12 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'saber.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.