Word
machete
Phoneticsma·chete
US/məˈʃɛˌti/
UK/mɐʃˈɛti/
Definitions
01a large knife
n. a large, heavy knife with a long blade used for cutting thick plants or grass.
n. a large, heavy knife used as an implement for cutting through thick vegetation or as a weapon.
“The gardener used a machete to clear the thick weeds behind the house.”
“The explorers relied on a heavy machete to hack through the dense undergrowth that blocked their path through the tropical forest.”
02to cut with a blade
v. to cut or chop something using a machete.
v. to cut, chop, or clear vegetation using a machete. Transitive — takes a direct object.
“They spent the afternoon macheteing a path through the tall grass.”
“The workers were tasked with macheteing the overgrown vines that had begun to compromise the integrity of the perimeter fence.”
Informal
Usage
The verb form is less common than the noun and is often used in descriptive or informal contexts.
Teaching tip
Learners should primarily focus on the noun; the verb form is relatively rare and often replaced by 'cut with a machete'.
03musical instrument
n. a small guitar-like instrument with four strings from Madeira, Portugal.
n. a small four-stringed instrument of the guitar family, originating in Madeira and ancestral to the ukulele.
“The musician played a traditional folk song on his machete.”
“Scholars of organology often cite the Portuguese machete as a direct predecessor to the Hawaiian ukulele.”
Technical
Teaching tip
This sense is highly specialized; unless the student is studying music history or Portuguese culture, they are unlikely to encounter it.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Spanish machete, diminutive of macho (“sledgehammer”), from Latin mattea, possibly from mactare (“slaughter in sacrifice”); cognate with Old French machier, French massue, English mace.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.