Sabre: a light cutting and thrusting weapon that targets the entire body above the waist, excluding the hands. The hand guard on the saber extends from pommel to the base of where the blade connects to the hilt. This guard is generally turned outwards during sport to protect the sword arm from touches
Foil: a light thrusting weapon that targets the torso (including the back), neck, and groin, but not the arms or legs. The foil has a small circular hand guard that serves to protect the hand from direct stabs. As the hand is not a valid target in foil, this is primarily for safety.
The épée is the modern weapon based on the dueling sword, the small sword (itself descended from the rapier), used in the sport of fencing. Épée is French for "sword". The entire body is a valid target area.