A sword,
similiar in design to a katana, wielded not only by samurai, but by "non-warrior" class people who were
forbidden by law to wear a longsword. The wakazashi has a shorter blade than a katana,
usually ranging from 12-23 inches in length.
Should a samurai's katana
break in combat, or if
the samurai needed an offhand weapon, he would
usually carry a wakazashi as a back-up.