rapier

Borrowed from Middle French rapiere, from Middle French (espee) rapiere, from Old French rapiere, raspiere, from Spanish raspadera (“poker; raker; scraper”), from Spanish raspar (“to scrape”), of Germanic origin. More at rasp.

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɹeɪpˌɪə(ɹ)/

rapier (plural rapiers)

1. A slender, straight, sharply pointed sword (double-edged, single-edged or edgeless).
   • c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:

     […] In his lawless fit,
     Behind the arras hearing something stir,
     Whips out his rapier, cries ‘A rat, a rat!’
     And in this brainish apprehension kills
     The unseen good old man.

   • 1911, G. K. Chesterton, “The Sins of Prince Saradine”, in The Innocence of Father Brown:

     The man beside him with the earrings and the big black case proceeded to unlock it. He took out of it two long Italian rapiers, with splendid steel hilts and blades, which he planted point downwards in the lawn.

• rapier-fish

rapier (not comparable)

1. Extremely sharp.
2. Cutting; employing keen wit.

   John is very quick on his feet during interviews by using his rapier responses.

rapier

1. comparative form of rapey: more rapey

• pairer, repair

Borrowed from Middle French (espee) rapiere.

• IPA^(key): /raːˈpiːr/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: ra‧pier
• Rhymes: -iːr

rapier n (plural rapieren, diminutive rapiertje n)

1. rapier

• degen

• rapir (obsolete)

Borrowed from French rapière. First attested in 1597.[1]

• IPA^(key): /ˈra.pjɛr/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -apjɛr
• Syllabification: ra‧pier

rapier m inan

1. rapier

• rapier in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• rapier in Polish dictionaries at PWN