Wiktionary
n. (alternative spelling of butchers' knife English)
WordNet
n. a large sharp knife for cutting or trimming meat
Wikipedia
A butcher knife or butcher's knife is a knife designed and used primarily for the butchering and/or dressing of animal carcases.
During the late 18th century to mid-1840s, the butcher knife was a key tool for mountain men. Simple, useful and cheap to produce, they were used for everything from skinning beaver, cutting food, self-defense, and scalping. During this time John Wilson, of Sheffield, England, was a major exporter of this type of knife to the Americans. These knives can be identified by brand markings and the stamp I. Wilson. In the 1830s an American company named J. Russell became the major producer of inexpensive, high quality cutlery. They soon became a name in every household and in the mountain man mythos.
Today the butcher knife is used throughout the world in the meat processing trade. The heftier blade works well for splitting, stripping and cutting meat. The French chef's knife is a derivation of the butcher knife, and is used as a general utility knife. Other similar meat-cutting knives include the carving knife and the cleaver. The carving knife usually is designed for slicing thin cuts of meat and often has a blunt or rounded point, with a scalloped or granton blade to improve separation of sliced cuts of meat. The cleaver is similar to the butcher's knife, but has a lighter and thinner blade for precision cutting.
Usage examples of "butcher knife".
Adam watched the deft handling of the large butcher knife with a sense of nostalgia.
With that advice he returned to his tent-store and honed a butcher knife to razor sharpness.
The butcher knife, found on the service-station blacktop, lies on the counter as before.
With the butcher knife in hand, Chyna swiftly backed away from Laura to the wall next to the open door.
The killer standing, standing with the butcher knife in one hand, standing in shadow, his face in shadow but turning now, turning very slowly and deliberately, turning so that she'll be able to see his face, turning as if he is looking for her—.
To reach her with his butcher knife would require that he crawl closer yet.
The heavy butcher knife plunged four inches into the thug's chest, right into his heart.
The heavy butcher knife plunged four inches into the thugs chest, right into his heart.
In his right hand the man held what looked like a butcher knife with an eighteen-inch blade.
He had been sitting on the lawn of a house in Epsom naked except for his underpants, butcher knife clutched in his hand like an old Stone Age savage or a dying but still vicious pygmy.
He hobbled to the table where Callie had sharpened the butcher knife earlier.