Draw, if you be men. Gregory, remember thy swashing blow. (49)

thy swashing blow, that crushing blow of yours for which you are so famous. To 'swash' is to strike with a heavy and sounding blow. Shakespeare also uses the word in the sense of 'swaggering,' A.Y.L. i.3.122, "We'll have a swashing and a martial outside"; and swasher for a bully, H.V. iii.2.30, "As young as I am, I have observed these three swashers."

Back to Romeo and Juliet (1.1)

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Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. Ed. K. Deighton. New York: MacMillan and Co., 1903. Shakespeare Online. 20 Aug. 2010. (date when you accessed the information) < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/romeoandjuliet/romeoglossswashing.html >.

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