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hammer
1[ham-er]
noun
a tool consisting of a solid head, usually of metal, set crosswise on a handle, used for beating metals, driving nails, etc.
any of various instruments or devices resembling this in form, action, or use, as a gavel, a mallet for playing the xylophone, or a lever that strikes the bell in a doorbell.
Firearms., the part of a lock that by its fall or action causes the discharge, as by exploding the percussion cap or striking the primer or firing pin; the cock.
one of the padded levers by which the strings of a piano are struck.
Track., a metal ball, usually weighing 16 pounds (7.3 kilograms), attached to a steel wire at the end of which is a grip, for throwing for distance in the hammer throw.
Anatomy., the malleus.
verb (used with object)
to beat or drive (a nail, peg, etc.) with a hammer.
to fasten by using hammer and nails; nail (often followed by down, up, etc.).
We spent the day hammering up announcements on fences and trees.
to assemble or build with a hammer and nails (often followed bytogether ).
He hammered together a small crate.
to shape or ornament (metal or a metal object) by controlled and repeated blows of a hammer; beat out.
to hammer brass; to hammer a brass bowl.
to form, construct, or make with or as if with a hammer; build by repeated, vigorous, or strenuous effort (often followed by out ortogether ).
to hammer out an agreement; to hammer together a plot.
to produce with or by force (often followed byout ).
to hammer out a tune on the piano; to hammer a home run.
to pound or hit forcefully.
to hammer someone in the jaw.
to settle (a strong disagreement, argument, etc.); bring to an end, as by strenuous or repeated effort (usually followed byout ).
They hammered out their differences over a glass of beer.
to present (points in an argument, an idea, etc.) forcefully or compellingly; state strongly, aggressively, and effectively (often followed byhome ).
to impress (something) as if by hammer blows.
You'll have to hammer the rules into his head.
British.
(in the London stock exchange) to dismiss (a person) from membership because of default.
to depress the price of (a stock).
verb (used without object)
to strike blows with or as if with a hammer.
to make persistent or laborious attempts to finish or perfect something (sometimes followed byaway ).
He hammered away at his speech for days.
to reiterate; emphasize by repetition (often followed byaway ).
The teacher hammered away at the multiplication tables.
Hammer
2[ham-er]
noun
Armand, 1898–1990, U.S. businessman and art patron.
hammer
/ ˈhæmə /
noun
a hand tool consisting of a heavy usually steel head held transversely on the end of a handle, used for driving in nails, beating metal, etc
any tool or device with a similar function, such as the moving part of a door knocker, the striking head on a bell, etc
a power-driven striking tool, esp one used in forging. A pneumatic hammer delivers a repeated blow from a pneumatic ram, a drop hammer uses the energy of a falling weight
a part of a gunlock that rotates about a fulcrum to strike the primer or percussion cap, either directly or via a firing pin
athletics
a heavy metal ball attached to a flexible wire: thrown in competitions
the event or sport of throwing the hammer
an auctioneer's gavel
a device on a piano that is made to strike a string or group of strings causing them to vibrate
anatomy the nontechnical name for malleus
curling the last stone thrown in an end
to be offered for sale by an auctioneer
with great effort or energy
fighting hammer and tongs
slang
persistently demanding and critical of someone
in hot pursuit of someone
verb
to strike or beat (a nail, wood, etc) with or as if with a hammer
(tr) to shape or fashion with or as if with a hammer
(tr; foll by in or into) to impress or force (facts, ideas, etc) into (someone) through constant repetition
(intr) to feel or sound like hammering
his pulse was hammering
to work at constantly
(tr)
to question in a relentless manner
to criticize severely
informal, to inflict a defeat on
slang, (tr) to beat, punish, or chastise
(tr) stock exchange
to announce the default of (a member)
to cause prices of (securities, the market, etc) to fall by bearish selling
Other Word Forms
- hammerable adjective
- hammerer noun
- hammerlike adjective
- outhammer verb (used with object)
- rehammer verb (used with object)
- underhammer noun
- hammer-like adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of hammer1
Word History and Origins
Origin of hammer1
Idioms and Phrases
under the hammer, for sale at public auction.
The old estate and all its furnishings went under the hammer.
More idioms and phrases containing hammer
Example Sentences
Dodger fans were so upset with everything that many of them walked out after Kershaw got hammered in a five-run eighth inning.
They sit top of Group K with their latest victory being a 5-0 hammering of Serbia in Belgrade.
A reputed member of the Locas, Wertz allegedly impersonated an FBI agent in an attempted home invasion robbery in February, hammering on the front door while holding a gun.
He had repeatedly struck his victim with a hammer and punched and kicked him during the attack.
But speaking after Nat Sciver-Brunt's side hammered South Africa in their Women's World Cup opener on Friday, Dean says they are becoming "tougher" from the experiences.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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