petty knife

noun

A Japanese paring knife.

OriginJapanese ペティナイフ ← French petit ← English knife →
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Meanings

nounpetty knife (plural petty knives)

plural petty knives

  1. A Japanese paring knife.

Origin

  1. Englishknife
  2. Frenchpetit
  3. Japaneseペティナイフ
  4. Englishpetty knife

From petty + knife, Derived from Japanese ペティナイフ, a compound of ペティ (unknown, perhaps from French petit) + ナイフ (from English knife).

More words from Japanese, French, English

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Cite this entry
APA

petty knife. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/petty%20knife

MLA

“petty knife.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/petty%20knife. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “petty knife,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/petty%20knife.

Source: petty knife on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.