thin washer on a sword guard
Technical term for a thin metal washer placed on either side of the tsuba (guard) of a Japanese sword. Not commonly encountered outside of sword-related contexts.
Thin washers are fitted on both sides of the sword guard.
up to the hilt; at wits' end
Used almost exclusively in the idiomatic expression 切羽詰まる (せっぱつまる), meaning to be driven to the wall or at one's wits' end. The standalone noun 切羽 is rare in this sense.
See also: 切羽詰まる
The expression 切羽詰まる describes a state of being driven into a corner.
be cornered; be in a desperate situation; be at one's wits' end
functioning cuff buttons; working buttonholes on jacket sleeves · surgeon's cuffs; functional cuffs on a jacket
Standard kanji spelling for the sword-fitting sense and the idiomatic expression.
Alternate kanji spelling, less common than 切羽.
The term originally referred to a thin metal washer on a sword guard. The idiomatic sense 'up to the hilt' or 'at wits' end' likely derives from the image of being pressed right up to the guard, leaving no room to retreat.