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whipsaw (HWIP-saw) - n., a rip saw with handles at either end so it can be operated by two people. v., to cut with a whipsaw; to subject to two opposing forces at the same time.
Typically used in a saw pit:
Thanks, WikiMedia!
(There are also frame whipsaws.) There are several specialized metaphoric extensions, all of which involve some measure of multiple forces, and most of them some measure of defeat of the wood in the middle. The word dates to the 15th century, though the extended meanings don't start appearing till the 1870s (I suspect but cannot prove ATM that those started as Americanisms).
---L.
Typically used in a saw pit:
Thanks, WikiMedia!
(There are also frame whipsaws.) There are several specialized metaphoric extensions, all of which involve some measure of multiple forces, and most of them some measure of defeat of the wood in the middle. The word dates to the 15th century, though the extended meanings don't start appearing till the 1870s (I suspect but cannot prove ATM that those started as Americanisms).
---L.
