cudgel
[ kuhj-uh l ]
/ ˈkʌdʒ əl /
noun
a short, thick stick used as a weapon; club.
verb (used with object), cudg·eled, cudg·el·ing, or (especially British) cudg·elled, cudg·el·ling.
to strike with a cudgel; beat.
Idioms for cudgel
cudgel one's brains,
to try to comprehend or remember: I cudgeled my brains to recall her name.
take up the cudgels,
to come to the defense or aid of someone or something.
Origin of cudgel
before 900; Middle English
cuggel, Old English
cycgel; akin to German
Kugel ball
OTHER WORDS FROM cudgel
cudg·el·er; especially British, cud·gel·ler, noun un·cudg·eled, adjective un·cudg·elled, adjectiveWords nearby cudgel
Example sentences from the Web for cudgel
British Dictionary definitions for cudgel
cudgel
/ (ˈkʌdʒəl) /
noun
a short stout stick used as a weapon
take up the cudgels (often foll by for or on behalf of)
to join in a dispute, esp to defend oneself or another
verb -els, -elling or -elled or US -els, -eling or -eled
(tr)
to strike with a cudgel or similar weapon
cudgel one's brains
to think hard about a problem
Derived forms of cudgel
cudgeller, nounWord Origin for cudgel
Old English
cycgel; related to Middle Dutch
koghele stick with knob