claw bar

noun

1. a crowbar or lever having a bend at one end with a claw for pulling spikes.

Word History and Origins

Origin of claw bar¹

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75

Example Sentences

After drills, she relates, members would head to the Big Claw bar near headquarters for beer, buffalo wings, karaoke and the raunchy jokes that the mostly male company loved to tell.

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In Niles, Calif., when Harry Short was arrested for burglarizing a tavern, he explained why he was carrying a twelve-inch claw bar, a ten-inch screwdriver, a hack saw and six blades, and a three-cornered file: he had a wooden leg and needed all those things to keep it in walking order.

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