Knife Dictionary

Common Knife Terms Used in the Articles and Reviews

Choil

The choil is the un-sharpened part of the knife blade that is located where the blade becomes part of the handle. At times, an indention is shaped to accept the index finger. The Spyderco Lava below is an excellent example of a knife with a large finger choil.

EDC

Every Day Carry – refers to an item (knife) that you would carry on your person every day for common tasks.

Jimping

Small notches or filework cut into the back of a blade or put on the choil or other portions of the knife. Jimping is used to prevent your fingers from sliding when using the knife.

Recurve

A recurve isn’t used to describe a specific blade shape. Instead, it is a feature on a blade, and many blade shapes can feature a recurve. A recurve generally refers to a blade with a sweeping, “S” shaped, edge. Recurves can be used to help balance a large chopping blade, provide better slicing ability to a blade, or simply enhance the look of a knife. This Smith and Wesson survival knife with a drop point blade is an excellent example of a knife with a recurve:

Swedge

The bevel on the back of the blade.

Tang / Full Tang

A tang is the protrusion of the blade steel into the handle of the knife. Below is a picture of the handle of 2 kitchen knives. The one on the right has a full tang while the one on the left has a partial tang. Generally speaking, a full tang knife will be stronger than a partial tang knife.

If there is a term that you don’t understand or something you would like to see added to the dictionary, please contact me.