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assegai

Syllabification: (as·se·gai)
Pronunciation: /ˈasəˌgī/
(also assagai)
Definition of assegai

noun (plural assegais)

  • 1a slender, iron-tipped, hardwood spear used chiefly by southern African peoples.
  • 2 (also assegai wood) a South African tree of the dogwood family that yields hard timber.
    • Curtisia dentata, family Cornaceae

verb (assegais, assegaing, assegaied)

[with object]
  • wound or kill with an assegai.

Origin:

early 17th century: from obsolete French azagaie or Portuguese azagaia, from Arabic az-zaġāyah, from az, al 'the' + Berber zaġāyah 'spear'

assegai in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of assegai in the British & World English dictionary

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