: a cavalry sword with a curved blade, thick back, and guard
2
a
: a light fencing or dueling sword having an arched guard that covers the back of the hand and a tapering flexible blade with a full cutting edge along one side and a partial cutting edge on the back at the tip compare épée, foilentry 4
Many local leaders consider the attacks on the county — which is racially diverse with a heavily Democratic voting base — as prejudicial saber-rattling in a Southern state mostly run by Republicans. Matthew Brown, Anchorage Daily News, 8 Sep. 2022 Instead they’re being subjected to minacity, saber-rattling, metaphorical muskets and invasions of their private lives. Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 30 Aug. 2022 Vladimir Putin has made these veiled threats and rattled the nuclear saber in particular.ABC News, 22 May 2022 They will certainly not be intimidated by the Kremlin’s age-old playbook of rattling the nuclear saber – in fact the opposite will be true. Eric Tegler, Forbes, 15 Apr. 2022 Beverly Hill offices, Smith, 21, asked to borrow the orange plastic light saber that my son, 5, had brought to the interview when my babysitter fell through.Washington Post, 2 Apr. 2022 This is not the first time Putin has rattled the nuclear saber. Nina Tannenwald, Scientific American, 10 Mar. 2022 Burkan told Guinness his main field of research was in hydrogen generation equipment and creating the saber was a daunting task. Asha C. Gilbert, USA TODAY, 26 Jan. 2022 And while his ratings get a bounce with every southernly rattle of the saber, years of economic sanctions have the reverse effect.New York Times, 16 Jan. 2022
Verb
Or was that probably designed to saber rattle Russia a little bit?NBC News, 27 Feb. 2022 Sign some papers, get the keys to your new place, saber the champagne. Brittany Anas, House Beautiful, 12 Mar. 2021 The horse’s saddle and blanket, and the boots and saber the horse carried in honor of the president, remain part of the Kennedy Library’s permanent collection.al, 24 Nov. 2020 At the end of the night, learn to saber a bottle of champagne. Lisa Herendeen, The Mercury News, 22 June 2019 Below, Pelka counsels us on everything from how to select the perfect Champagne to how to safely saber your bottle of bubbly. Madeleine Luckel, Vogue, 13 July 2018 The most impressive way to kick off any Champagne-fueled party is to saber a bottle, popping the cork from the wine with the swipe of a knife. Madeleine Luckel, Vogue, 13 July 2018 Champagne bottles are sabered open with swords and free Lexus shuttles stop for anyone who doesn’t feel like walking more than a block. Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY, 19 June 2018 Here's a step-by-step guide on how to saber a bottle of champagne. Sam Dangremond, Town & Country, 21 Dec. 2017 See More
Word History
Etymology
Noun
French sabre, modification of German dialect Sabel, from Middle High German, probably of Slav origin; akin to Russian sablya saber