Claybeg

Origin

From Gaelic claidheamh beag "small sword".

Attested 1825 (as Clay-beg).

Full definition of claybeg

Noun

1. the Scottish broadsword used during the Early Modern period
• 1835 "When Sir Walter Scott speaks, prior to 1715, of the inferiority of the claymore to the rapier, he refers not to the claybeg or , now worn by the officers and sergeants of the Highland corps, and which has usurped the venerable name of the ancient Scottish weapon." (The United service magazine, letter to the editor, p. 109)

Usage notes

Used as a term for the Scottish basket-hilted broadsword usually known as claymore by those who take the view that this is a misnomer, and that "claymore" is properly applied to the medieval two-handed sword only.