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shillelagh

or shil·la·la, shil·la·lah, shil·le·lah

[ shuh-ley-lee, -luh ]

/ ʃəˈleɪ li, -lə /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR shillelagh ON THESAURUS.COM

noun (esp. in Ireland)

a cudgel, traditionally of blackthorn or oak.

Origin of shillelagh

First recorded in 1670–80, shillelagh is from the Irish word Síol Éiligh town in Co. Wicklow; the adjoining forest provided wood for the clubs

Words nearby shillelagh

shikoku, shiksa, shilh, shilha, shill, shillelagh, shilling, shilling mark, shillong, shilluk, shilly-shally

Example sentences from the Web for shillelagh

Yet how mountaineer without ballads any more than without a shillelagh?

Thomas Davis, Selections from his Prose and Poetry |Thomas Davis
The best material in Ireland was found in the woods that surround the ancient little village of Shillelagh—hence the name.

One Irish Summer |William Eleroy Curtis
The shillelagh was then a beautiful, tough, formidable weapon, and when tipped with an iron ferrule was quite ready for action.

McClure's Magazine, Vol. 1, No. 2, July, 1893 |Various
The walls and ceiling were so hung with shamrock green and shillelagh branches that it looked a perfect Grove of Blarney.

Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 105 December 30, 1893 |Various

The shillelagh was not a mere stick picked up for a few pence, or cut casually out of the common hedge.

McClure's Magazine, Vol. 1, No. 2, July, 1893 |Various

British Dictionary definitions for shillelagh

shillelagh

shillala

/ (ʃəˈleɪlə, -lɪ, Irish ʃɪˈleːlə) /

noun

(in Ireland) a stout club or cudgel, esp one made of oak or blackthorn

Word Origin for shillelagh

C18: from Irish Gaelic sail cudgel + éille leash, thong