Dictionary

battle-sharp en · ADJ

Etymology

From battle + sharp, perhaps as a partial calque of Old English beadusċearp.

Meanings

1. (rare) Sharp for use in battle or fighting.
   • The division was a keen, well-rested force eager for action, although the long wait in England and the many cancellations had created a degree of staleness, so the division was not battle-sharp. 2019, Martin Middlebrook, Arnhem 1944: The Airborne Battle:
   • It was calming. Kazuteru worked quickly, his sword still battle-sharp cutting through the clotted mess of flesh with ease. 2013, David Kirk, Child of Vengeance:
   • The bitter and battle-sharp, borne on his byrny; Asunder the Weder's helm smote the Worm midmost; They felled the fiend, and force drave the life out, And they twain together had gotten him ending, Those athelings sib. 1834, The Tale of Beowulf, page 70:

Forms