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assagai

 - 4 dictionary results

as⋅sa⋅gai

  [as-uh-gahy] noun, plural -gais, verb (used with object), -gaied, -gai⋅ing.
Use assagai in a Sentence
assegai.

as⋅se⋅gai

  [as-uh-gahy] noun, plural -gais, verb, -gaied, -gai⋅ing.
–noun
1. the slender javelin or spear of the Bantu-speaking people of southern Africa.
2. a southern African tree, Curtisia dentata, of the dogwood family, from whose wood such spears are made.
–verb (used with object)
3. to pierce with an assegai.
Also, assagai.

Origin:
1615–25; earlier azagaia < Pg < Ar az zaghāyah, equiv. to al the + Berber zaghāyah assegai
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To assagai
as·sa·gai   (ās'ə-gī')   
n.  Variant of assegai.
as·se·gai or as·sa·gai   (ās'ə-gī')   
n.  

  1. A light spear or lance, especially one with a short shaft and long blade for close combat, used by Bantu peoples of southern Africa.

  2. A southern African tree (Curtisia dentata) having wood used for making spears or lances.


[Obsolete French azagaie, probably from Old Spanish azagayah, from Arabic az-zaġāya : al-, the + Berber zaġāya, spear.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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