snath

See also: snáth

English

An example of a scythe:
1. toe
2. chine
3. beard
4. heel
5. tang
6. ring
7. snath or snathe
8. grip or nib

Alternative forms

• snythe, snathe, snaith, sneath, sneathe, etc.
• sned, sneed

Etymology

From a variant of snead, itself from Middle English snede, from Old English snǣd (“the shaft or handle of a scythe”), akin to Old English snīþan (“to cut”). More at snithe.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /snæθ/
• Rhymes: -æθ

Noun

snath (plural snaths)

1. The shaft of a scythe.
   • 1997, Charles Frazier, chapter 3, in Cold Mountain, London: Hodder and Stoughton, page 71:

     It felt natural to him, holding a scythe in his hands and working with it again […] but the blade clashed on the stone of the foundation and threw a spray of white sparks and broke off close so that he was left holding but the snath.

Translations

shaft of a scythe

• Bulgarian: дръжка (bg) (drǎžka)
• Czech: kosiště (cs) n
• Finnish: viikatteenvarsi (fi)
• French: manche de faux (fr)
• German: Sensenwurf (de), Sensenstiel (de) m, Sensenbaum (de) m
• Icelandic: orf n
• Ingrian: lysi
• Japanese: 大鎌の柄 (ja) (おおがまのえ, ōgama no e) (literally "scythe shaft")
• Polish: kosisko n, stylisko (pl) n
• Portuguese: foice (pt)
• Russian: рукоя́тка (ru) f (rukojátka) (косы́), черено́к (ru) m (čerenók) (косы́), косови́ще (ru) n (kosovíšče)
• Slovak: kosisko n
• Swedish: orv (sv)

See also

• haft, the handle of any of various tools
• helve, the handle of any of various tools

References

• OED 2nd edition 1989

Anagrams

• Hants, NHTSA, Thans, ha'nts, hants, hasn't, sha'n't, shan't, shant