A sheath knife is a fixed-bladed

knife A knife (: knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least Stone Age, 2.5 million years ago, as e ...

that fits into a sheath, by tradition usually of

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning (leather), tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffal ...

, now often of other material such as

nylon Nylon is a family of synthetic polymers characterised by amide linkages, typically connecting aliphatic or Polyamide#Classification, semi-aromatic groups. Nylons are generally brownish in color and can possess a soft texture, with some varieti ...

kevlar Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s as ...

. The sheath is used to protect the knife and act as a carrier. Most importantly, the sheath protects the person carrying the knife (e.g. in the pocket or hanging on the belt) from potentially serious injuries that the sharp blade could easily cause if unprotected. To provide sufficient protection, sheaths made of soft materials, such as leather, often have reinforcements, inside or outside, made of metal sheet or other suitable strong materials. The blades vary in size, shape, and construction. In Australian law, "sheath knife" has a different definition. In this case, they are a type of non-folding, fixed-blade knife which has "a sheath which withdraws into its handle", thus giving something of the effect of an " out-the-front" flick knife. These knives, like flick knives, are classed as "prohibited weapons" in Australia.

References

See also