machete

noun

ma·​chete mə-ˈshe-tē 

-ˈche-;

-ˈshet

: a large heavy knife used for cutting sugarcane and underbrush and as a weapon

Examples of machete in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Survivors said that not only were people fighting with their hands, several people were seriously injured by a machete. — David Goodhue october 2, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2026

Officials said one passenger attacked others with a machete, causing severe injuries and forcing dozens to jump into the water. — Dánica Coto, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2026

Over the course of an hour and a half, team members made their way to the victims and used machetes and chainsaws to clear the overgrown trails. — Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 30 Sep. 2026

The Coast Guard said the makeshift boat capsized late Sunday after a fight in which some people were severely injured by a machete, forcing the group to jump into the water despite not wearing life vests. — Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 29 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Spanish

First Known Use

1575, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for machete

• agree
• allee
• banshee
• beastly
• bibi
• bowsprit
• carefree
• cerci
• chablis
• cowpea
• crappie
• crappy

Kids Definition

machete

noun

ma·​chete mə-ˈshet-ē 

-ˈchet-ē;

mə-ˈshet

: a large heavy knife used especially for cutting sugarcane and underbrush and as a weapon