A claymore (/ˈkleɪmɔər/; from Scottish Gaelic claidheamh-mòr, "great sword") is the Scottish variant of the late medieval two-handed longsword. It is characterised as having a cross hilt of forward-sloping quillons with quatrefoil terminations. It was in use from the 15th to 17th centuries.In later years (18th century onwards) the word claymore began to be used in Scotland and parts of England to refer to basket-hilted swords.