machete
n. countablen. a large, heavy knife with a wide blade. You use it as a tool for cutting through thick plants or as a weapon.
n. a broad, heavy blade used as both an implement for clearing undergrowth and a weapon. Typically associated with tropical or agricultural contexts.
He used a machete to clear the tall grass.
The workers spent the morning using machetes to hack through the dense jungle vines blocking the path.
In many agricultural societies, the machete serves as an indispensable multi-purpose tool, functioning as both a harvester for sugar cane and a primary instrument for land maintenance.
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.
Often takes the verb 'wield' or 'brandish' in a literary or descriptive context.