noun
stiletto
stih-LEH-toh
noun
1
A short, slender knife or dagger used for stabbing.
"The assassin hid a stiletto up his sleeve."
2
A woman's shoe with a very tall, thin heel.
"She wobbled across the cobblestones in her new stilettos."
How to Use Stiletto
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishEither a thin stabbing knife, or the tall thin heel shoe shaped like one.
Common pairings
stiletto heels
stiletto blade
Word Forms
stilettoed past tense, stilettos plural, stilettoes plural, stiletti plural, stilettos singular
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Etymology
Borrowed from Italian stiletto, from Latin stilus ("a pointed writing instrument") — the same root as "stylus" and "style".