intransitive. In sword-fighting or fencing: to step or move to the side, typically in order to achieve a better offensive or defensive position, or…

hold (‥) hand. to hold one's hand: to stay or arrest one's hand in the act of doing something; hence gen. to refrain, forbear.

Music and Fencing. To give a short fanciful exhibition by way of exercise before the real performance. To play, with a flourish. Also quasi-transitive…

Fencing. intransitive. To interlock one's weapon with another's. Cf. engage, v. 17. Obsolete.

intransitive. Swordsmanship and Fencing. To lunge or thrust with the sword with the aim of making a fatal or decisive hit. Now rare.

intransitive. Fencing. To give ground before one's opponent; to take one or more steps backward.

intransitive. Fencing. To make a pass (on or upon a person); to thrust, lunge. Also (rare) transitive: to make or execute (a thrust). Obsolete.

intransitive. Fencing. To return to a position of guard after a thrust. Also with to (also on) (one's) guard. In earlier use also transitive and figur…

intransitive. In Fencing: to repeat a thrust or stroke. Obsolete.

intransitive and transitive. To lunge (in various senses).

Fencing. (intransitive) To shift one's sword from one side to the other of one's adversary's sword, to ‘disengage’.

Swordsmanship and Fencing. intransitive. To ward off or turn aside a weapon or blow, esp. with a countermove. Also in extended use.

intransitive. Fencing. To reverse the relative position of the blades by smartly passing the point to the opposite side of the opponent's sword.

intransitive. Fencing. To cross one's blade over the blade of an opponent. Obsolete. rare.

Fencing. To make a volte. Also figurative.

= carte and tierce v.

Fencing. intransitive. To make a thrust in which the blade slides along the opponent's blade. Also transitive with the blade as object.

Fencing. (See quots. and cf. whirl, v. 3.)

intransitive. Fencing. To make a thrust with a foil or rapier.

Fencing. intransitive. To perform the salute used in fencing. See salute, n.1 4.

intransitive. Fencing. To make a riposte (riposte, n. 1) or return thrust at one's opponent. Also †transitive with personal object (obsolete).

Fencing, etc. (intransitive) To make a cut or slashing stroke: see cut, n.2 2b.

intransitive. To use the quart position in fencing. Cf. quarte, n. rare.

intransitive. To make a repost or return thrust. Frequently in figurative context. Cf. riposte, v. 1.

intransitive. To make a remise.