Definition

Noun: A large, heavy, sharp knife specifically designed for cutting, trimming, and preparing meat. It is a tool commonly associated with butchers and meat processing.

Usage

The term "butcher knife" refers specifically to the cutting tool. It is used as a countable noun. * The chef sharpened the butcher knife before sectioning the primal cut of beef. * A clean, sharp butcher knife is essential for breaking down a chicken.

Advanced Usage

• Metaphorical Use: Can be used to describe a brutal or clumsy action.
  • The critic said the editor had taken a butcher knife to the manuscript, removing entire chapters.

Variants and Related Words

• Butcher's knife: An alternative phrasing with the same meaning.
• Cleaver: A related but distinct tool; a cleaver has a broad, rectangular blade primarily for chopping through bone, while a butcher knife typically has a narrower, pointed blade for slicing and trimming.
• Carving knife: A knife for slicing cooked meat, usually thinner and more flexible than a butcher knife.

Synonyms

• Meat knife
• Butcher's blade

Related Phrases

• To butcher (verb): To slaughter or cut up an animal for meat. Figuratively, to ruin something through incompetence.
  • He completely butchered his lines in the play.
• Butcher block: The thick, sturdy wooden table on which a butcher knife is typically used.

Noun

1. a large sharp knife for cutting or trimming meat