[hal-berd, hawl-, hol-; formerly haw-berd] 
| a shafted weapon with an axlike cutting blade, beak, and apical spike, used esp. in the 15th and 16th centuries. |
[hal-bert, hawl-, hol-; formerly haw-bert] .
| hal·berd (hāl'bərd, hôl'-) n. A weapon of the 15th and 16th centuries having an axlike blade and a steel spike mounted on the end of a long shaft. [French hallebarde, from Old French alabarde, from Old Italian alabarda, from Middle High German helmbarde, halmbarte : helm, handle + barte, ax (from Old High German barta; see bhardh-ā- in Indo-European roots).] hal'ber·dier' (-bər-dîr') n. |