once upon a time dueling with swords was the gentlemanly way to settle a point of honor
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This is the place to go for Japanese art and artifacts, with a strong, 110,000-piece collection of paintings, tea ceremony ceramics, samurai swords and armor, kimonos, lacquerware, sculpture, ukiyo-e prints, and more.—Jessica Kozuka, Travel + Leisure, 13 Mar. 2026 Lyrically, Strictly 4 the Scythe is essentially eight tracks of lyrical sparring, everyone busting out trademark flows to keep the swords sharp.—Dylan Green, Pitchfork, 12 Mar. 2026 The Bluff stars Chopra Jonas as a former pirate captain who hung up her sword for a tranquil life until her sea captain is kidnapped by a former nemesis.—Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 11 Mar. 2026 Players can acquire four melee weapons — a katana, a spear, knuckles and a heavy sword — and four firearms — a pistol, a machine gun, a shotgun and a rocket launcher.—Gieson Cacho, Mercury News, 10 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for sword
Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Old English sweord; akin to Old High German swert sword
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of sword was
before the 12th century