nightstickn.
/ˈnʌɪtstɪk/, U.S. /ˈnaɪtˌstɪk/ Originally U.S.
A stick of medium length carried by a police officer or security guard, esp. at night.Now usually thought of as longer than the traditional truncheon.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > club or stick > [noun] > constable's or watchman's
pestlea1500
baton?1590
locust club1850
locust1857
locust stick1859
nightclub1882
nightstick1887
billy1889
1887 W. E. S. Fales Brooklyn's Guardians ii. 30 In the wealthier thoroughfares the brawls were of so frequent occurrence that the sight of two watchmen..pounding each other with their night-sticks, occasioned no comment.
1893 S. Crane Maggie xi. 102 The officer made a terrific advance, club in hand. One comprehensive sweep of the long night stick threw the ally to the floor.
1932 New Yorker 4 June 23 There's a lot of law at the end of a nightstick.
1963 T. Morris & P. Morris Pentonville x. 209 Hospital officers do not carry night sticks.
1993 Daily Tel. 30 Sept. 3/1 Two police officers..criticised the traditional truncheon yesterday as inadequate... They called for a better alternative, like a baton or nightstick.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1887