espee

See also: espée

Middle French

Alternative forms

• espée (16th and 17th centuries)

Etymology

From Old French espee.

Noun

espee f (plural espees)

1. sword

Descendants

• French: épée
  • → English: epee

References

• espee on Dictionnaire du Moyen Français (1330–1500) (in French)

Old French

Alternative forms

• spede (9th century)
• espethe (early Anglo-Norman)

Etymology

Inherited from Latin spatha, which was borrowed from Ancient Greek σπάθη (spáthē).

Pronunciation

• (archaic) IPA^(key): /(e)sˈpeːðə/
• (classical) IPA^(key): /esˈpeːə/
• (late) IPA^(key): /eːˈpeə/

Noun

espee oblique singular, f (oblique plural espees, nominative singular espee, nominative plural espees)

1. sword
   • c. 1150, Author unknown, La Chanson de Roland:

     Cler en riant l’ad dit a Guenelun :
     « Tenez m’espee, meillur n’en at nuls hom[. »]

     Clearly laughing, he [the king] said to Guenelun
     "Take hold of my sword, no man has better".

Derived terms

• espeer

Descendants

• Middle French: espee
  • French: épée
    • → English: epee

References

• Godefroy, Frédéric, Dictionnaire de l’ancienne langue française et de tous ses dialectes du IX^e au XV^e siècle (1881) (espee, supplement)
• espee on the Anglo-Norman On-Line Hub