Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - saber

 I. noun  or sabre  Etymology: French sabre, modification of German dialect Sabel, from Middle High German, probably of Slavic origin; akin to Russian sablya ~  Date: 1680  1. a cavalry sword with a curved blade, thick back, and guard  2.  a. a light fencing or dueling sword having an arched guard that covers the back of the hand and a tapering flexible blade with a full cutting edge along one side and a partial cutting edge on the back at the tip — compare epee, foil  b. the sport of fencing with the ~  II. transitive verb  or sabre  (~ed or sabred; ~ing or sabring)  Date: 1790 to strike, cut, or kill with a ~