sabot

noun

sa·bot sa-ˈbō

ˈsa-(ˌ)bō,

for sense 1b also

ˈsa-bət

: a wooden shoe worn in various European countries

b(1)

: a strap across the instep in a shoe especially of the sandal type

(2)

: a shoe having a sabot strap

: a thrust-transmitting carrier that positions a missile in a gun barrel or launching tube and that prevents the escape of gas ahead of the missile

: shoe sense 6

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The Evolution of Sabot

The term sabot may have first been introduced into English in a 1607 translation from French: "wooden shoes," readers were informed, are "properly called sabots." The gun-related sense appeared in the mid-1800s with the invention of a wooden gizmo that kept gun shells from shifting in the gun barrel. Apparently, someone thought the device resembled a wooden shoe and named it sabot (with later generations of this device carrying on the name). Another kind of French sabot—a metal "shoe" used to secure rails to railway ties—is said to be the origin of the word sabotage, from workers destroying the sabots during a French railway strike in the early 1900s. The word sabot is probably related to savate, a Middle French word for an old shoe.

Examples of sabot in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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The Traditions Smackdown Carnivore 250-grain bullet with sabot produced the following results. —Brad Fenson, Outdoor Life, 1 Nov. 2023 The high polish in the bore after lapping helps minimize plastic buildup from sabots, which can degrade accuracy. —Tony Hansen, Outdoor Life, 22 June 2023