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DictionaryshivMakeshift knife
noun / verb

shiv

SHIV/ʃɪv/

A makeshift knife used as a weapon.

The shiv has an irregular blade and a cloth-wrapped grip.

An isolated improvised knife: a rough, irregular metal blade with a pointed tip and a worn cloth-wrapped grip, clearly unlike a manufactured kitchen knife.
Etymology
shivEnglishknife

The older cant word chive already meant “knife,” so the modern weapon sense continues an established slang use for a blade. Its deeper origin is unknown; a Romany connection is often suggested.

In context

Drupal Association26:39
stab you with a shiv made from the plastic of your own keyboard
DrupalCon Amsterdam 2014: Models & Service Layers; Hemoglobin & Hobgoblins

More examples

  • The crime novel mentions a shiv hidden in a cell.
  • The report described an attack involving a shiv.
  • The prisoner in the story threatened to shiv his rival.

Forms

shiv · shivs · shivved · shivving

Similar words

knife
Knife is general; shiv suggests an improvised weapon rather than an ordinary manufactured tool.
shank
Shank is another prison-slang term for an improvised stabbing weapon.