Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Sheath
Sheath
,Noun.
[OE.
schethe
, AS. scǣð
, sceáð
, scēð
; akin to OS. skēðia
, D. scheede
, G. scheide
, OHG. sceida
, Sw. skida
, Dan. skede
, Icel. skeiðir
, pl., and to E. shed
, v.t., originally meaning, to separate, to part. See Shed
.] 1.
A case for the reception of a sword, hunting knife, or other long and slender instrument; a scabbard.
The dead knight’s sword out of his
sheath
he drew. Spenser.
2.
Any sheathlike covering, organ, or part.
Specifically: (a)
(Bot.)
The base of a leaf when sheathing or investing a stem or branch, as in grasses.
(b)
(Zool.)
One of the elytra of an insect.
Medullary sheath
. (Anat.)
See under
– Medullary
. Primitive sheath
. (Anat.)
See
– Neurilemma
. Sheath knife
, a knife with a fixed blade, carried in a sheath.
– Sheath of Schwann
. (Anat.)
See
Schwann's sheath
.Webster 1828 Edition
Sheath
SHEATH
,Noun.
1. A case for the reception of a sword or other long and slender instrument; a scabbard. A sheath is that which separates, and hence a defense.
2. In botany, a membrane investing a stem or branch, as in grasses.
3. Any thin covering for defense; the wing-case of an insect.