SYTHE, noun [Heb. an ax.] 1. An instrument for mowing grass, or cutting other grain or vegetables. It consists of a long curving blade with a sharp edge, made fast to a handle, which in New England is called a snath, and which is bent into a convenient form for swinging the blade to advantage. The blade is hung to the snath at an acute angle. In mythology, Saturn or Time is represented with a sythe the emblem of destruction. 2. The curved sharp blade used anciently in war chariots. SYTHE, verb transitive To mow. [Not in use.]
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI