before 900; Middle English al, eal, aul, Old English al, eal, æl; cognate with Old Norse alr; akin to Middle English ēl, Old English ǣl, Old High German āla ( German Ahle ), Sanskrit ā́rā
An awl is a tool with a long, sharp end for making holes in leather or wood. If your uncle is a shoemaker, an awl might be the perfect gift for him. It looks kind of like an ice pick, but an awl is a tool used by shoemakers, carpenters and other craftsmen who need to punch small holes through leather or wood. If your shoes were made by hand, chances are all those little holes where the laces go through were made with the use of an awl.
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
She also had silver earplugs threaded through with silver hoops, an awl covered in silver—and a companion: a middle-age man laid to rest in the same jar with a fraction of her wealth.
From Science Magazine ● Oct. 4, 2023
"Wagner is not a piece of slippery soap which the bureaucrats have got used to shoving all over the place; Wagner is an awl, a stiletto that you cannot hide," Prigozhin said.
From Reuters ● May 28, 2023
With a screwdriver or an awl, poke into the wood; if it goes in more than ⅛ inch, rot has probably begun.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 28, 2022
And maybe — maybe — she doesn’t get the awl.
From New York Times ● Apr. 28, 2022
“With an awl, pumpkin. A really sharp one.”
From "Landscape with Invisible Hand" by M.T. Anderson
The real power rests in a tropical palace at Buitenzorg, outside Batavia, where lives His Excellency Jonkheer A.W.L.
From Time Magazine Archive
“I hear that pretty much every day,” Treft said, in a back workroom filled with assorted hammers, awls, jerk needles and heavy wax thread.
From Washington Times ● Feb. 6, 2021
Some of the points were shaped into scrapers and awls; others bore a mark where they may have been attached to a shaft and used as spears.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 15, 2018
The site became a tourist attraction; thousands of state schoolchildren were bused in on field trips, as workers on the flood plain unearthed delicate ancient tools such as needles and awls.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 22, 2017
They scrape old layers of varnish and wood with awls, planes and other tools.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 21, 2015
Tools were produced in diverse and distinctive shapes so modern that their functions as needles, awls, engraving tools, and so on are obvious to us.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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.
