machete

noun

ma·​chete mə-ˈshe-tē How to pronounce machete (audio)
-ˈche-;
-ˈshet
Synonyms of machetenext
: 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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Ballout was suspected of driving a van into a crowd near Berlin’s Pride festival Saturday night before apparently stabbing others with a machete in what authorities believe was an Islamic extremist terror attack. — Geir Moulson, Chicago Tribune, 26 July 2026 Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, 37, was arrested in September 2025 in the beheading death of Chandra Nagamallaiah using a machete, Dallas police have said. — Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 July 2026 One of the men who believed the boyfriend had tossed the bottle pulled out a machete and stabbed a relative of the couple. — Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 12 July 2026 The murder weapon, a machete, was recovered at the scene, police said. — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 8 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for machete

Word History

Etymology

Spanish

First Known Use

1575, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of machete was in 1575

Rhymes for machete

See All Rhymes for machete

Browse Nearby Words

macher
machete
machi
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Machete.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/machete. Accessed 1 Aug. 2026.

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Kids Definition

machete

noun
ma·​chete mə-ˈshet-ē How to pronounce machete (audio)
-ˈchet-ē;
mə-ˈshet
: a large heavy knife used especially for cutting sugarcane and underbrush and as a weapon

More from Merriam-Webster on machete

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for machete

Nglish: Translation of machete for Spanish Speakers

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