Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. An ax having a hammer face opposite the blade, used to slaughter cattle.
- n. A medieval battle-ax consisting of a long shaft ending in an ax or a combination of an ax, hammer, and pick.
- v. To strike or fell with or as if with a poleax: "When a gang of doves circled above the flowing water and swooped in to feed, he poleaxed the leader with a clean head shot” ( William Hoffman).
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. Formerly, a weapon or tool consisting of an ax-head on a long handle, and often combined with a hook at the end, or a blade like a pick on the side opposite the blade of the ax; later, more loosely, a battle-ax.
- n. A weapon used in the navy by boarders and also to cut away rigging, etc. It is a hatchet with a short handle at the end of which is a strong hook.
- n. An ax for slaughtering cattle.
Wiktionary
- n. alternative spelling of poleaxe.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. Anciently, a kind of battle-ax with a long handle; later, an ax or hatchet with a short handle, and a head variously patterned; -- used by soldiers, and also by sailors in boarding a vessel.
WordNet 3.0
- n. an ax used to slaughter cattle; has a hammer opposite the blade
- n. a battle ax used in the Middle Ages; a long handled ax and a pick
- v. fell with or as if with a poleax
Etymologies
- Middle English, alteration (influenced by pole, long piece of wood) of pollax : poll, head; see poll + ax, ax; see ax1.
Examples
“You could poleax these people with a sledgehammer to the noggin, morning, noon and night, and still nothing would get through.”
“Aren't they cute when you poleax them with reality?”
“Nearby, Vaako, realizing what had happened, realizing what it meant, let the ancient poleax he still held fall to the ground.”
The Chronicles of Riddick
“Ceremonial poleax in hand, Vaako leaped from the balustrade, landed on the floor below, and raced toward the throne.”
The Chronicles of Riddick
“The poleax tipped up and followed him into oblivion.”
Nemesis
“Takara said nothing, but held the poleax shaft over the guard's head.”
Nemesis
“Kireno dodged the sweep of a poleax and charged in before the guard could recover.”
Nemesis
“Thus he missed the fact that the joy fill news of Bane's return caused Stephen to go rigid, as if struck by a poleax.”
The Hand of Chaos
“Then, as Zal raised the poleax, Conan darted in under the blow, and the next instant Zal was down, writhing in his own blood and entrails.”
Conan of Cimmeria
“As he parried, the Cimmerian saw that the man called Zal was advancing with a heavy poleax, while Red Turban was scrambling to his feet.”
Conan of Cimmeria
Lists
‘poleax’ hasn't been added to any lists yet.
knitandpurl Whenever I see this word I want to say it in my head like "pole-ee-ax" even though I know it's not. I just came across it in a review in the New Yorker of a production of The Glass Menagerie. Apr 10, 2010