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dagger

n. · v.
US //ˈdæɡɝ// UK //dˈæɡɐ// dag·ger
  1. 1 a weapon (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    a short knife with a sharp point used for stabbing.

    a short-bladed stabbing weapon, typically double-edged and tapering to a sharp point.

    Example

    The museum displayed an ancient dagger made of bronze and gold.

    Example

    The assassin concealed a small, ornate dagger beneath his cloak, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
  2. 2 printing symbol (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical

    the symbol † used in books to show a note or a date of death.

    a typographical mark (†) used as a reference to a footnote or to indicate a person's death.

    Example

    Look for the dagger symbol next to the name for more information.

    Example

    The editor used a dagger to mark the footnote, as the asterisk had already been employed for a previous citation on the same page.

    Usage

    The symbol is often called an obelisk in formal printing contexts.
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  1. 3 decisive sports play (n.)
    C1 Advanced Informal American English Sport

    a shot or goal late in a game that makes it almost impossible for the other team to win.

    a decisive score or play made near the end of a competition that effectively secures victory for one side.

    Example

    His three-pointer at the last second was the dagger that ended the game.

    Example

    The striker's second goal in the eighty-ninth minute was the absolute dagger, extinguishing any hope of a comeback for the visiting team.
    • clincher
    • game winner
  2. 4 to stab (v.)
    C2 Proficiency Literary

    to stab someone or something with a dagger.

    to pierce or wound with a short-bladed weapon.

    Example

    The villain tried to dagger the hero during the final fight.

    Example

    In the final act of the tragedy, the protagonist is daggered by his own trusted advisor in a shocking betrayal.
Etymology 1

From Middle English daggere, daggare, dagard, probably adapted from Old French dague (1229), related to Occitan, Italian, Spanish daga, Dutch dagge, German Degen, Middle Low German dagge (“knife's point”), Old Norse daggarðr, Danish daggert, Faroese daggari, Welsh dager, dagr, Breton dac, Albanian thikë (“a knife, dagger”), thek (“to stab, to pierce with a sharp object”). In English attested from the 1380s. The ultimate origin of the word is unclear. Grimm suspects Celtic origin. Others have suggested derivation from an unattested Vulgar Latin *daca "Dacian [knife]", from the Latin adjective dācus. Chastelain (Dictionaire etymologique, 1750) thought that French dague was a derivation from German dagge, dagen, although not attested until a much later date). The knightly dagger evolves from the 12th century. Guillaume le Breton (died 1226) uses daca in his Philippide. Other Middle Latin forms include daga, dagga, dagha, dagger, daggerius, daggerium, dagarium, dagarius, diga; the forms with -r- are late 14th century adoptions of the English word). OED points out that there is also an English verb dag (“to stab”) from which this could be a derivation, but the verb is attested only from about 1400. Relation to Old Armenian դակու (daku, “adze, axe”) has also been suggested. Alternatively, a connection from Proto-Indo-European *dʰāg-u- and cognate with Ancient Greek θήγω (thḗgō, “to sharpen, whet”).

Etymology 2

Perhaps from diagonal.

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