poleaxe
noun
[ ˈpəʊlaks ]
• another term for battleaxe (sense 1).
poleaxe
verb
• hit, kill, or knock down with or as if with a poleaxe.
• "the tigress had fallen to my bullet as if poleaxed"
Origin:
Middle English: related to Middle Dutch pol(l)aex, Middle Low German pol(l)exe (see poll, axe). The change in the first syllable was due to association with pole1; the first element poll- may have referred to a special head of the axe or to the head of an enemy.
