hacksaw

or hack saw

[ hak-saw ]

/ ˈhækˌsɔ /

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noun

a saw for cutting metal, consisting typically of a narrow, fine-toothed blade fixed in a frame.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of hacksaw

First recorded in 1645–55; hack¹ + saw¹

Words nearby hacksaw

hackmatack, hackney, hackney coach, hackneyed, hack off, hacksaw, hacktivism, hacktivist, hackwork, Hacky Sack, had

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use hacksaw in a sentence

This year, the brand’s designers took a hacksaw to the once-traditional nose and tail, adding a more angular, geometric look.
Runner-Up Review: The Snowboards That Almost Made Our 2022 Winter Buyer’s Guide|agintzler|October 26, 2021|Outside Online
They dress in clothing from the flophouse lost-and-found and are groomed with a hacksaw and gravel rake.
Up to a Point: They Made Me Write About Lena Dunham|P. J. O’Rourke|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But Switzer, one of college football's finest hacksaw butchers, still knew a good cut of meat.
The Greatest Football Player That Never Was|Buzz Bissinger|February 10, 2011|DAILY BEAST
In an emergency an ordinary hacksaw blade may be made to serve very acceptably as a paper perforator.
The Boy Mechanic, Book 2|Various

Still one might be nicked with a hacksaw and left to break with the shock when the next log ran down the slide.
The Girl From Keller's|Harold Bindloss
The rudder-post should be a piece of brass rod so thick that it can be split with a hacksaw.
Boys' Book of Model Boats|Raymond Francis Yates
The hub is clamped between two boards placed in the vise, and a hacksaw is used to cut a slot in the hub.
Boys' Book of Model Boats|Raymond Francis Yates
With a hacksaw this is cut off in a sloping direction with an angle to correspond with the slope in the bottom of the dry-dock.
Boys' Book of Model Boats|Raymond Francis Yates

British Dictionary definitions for hacksaw

hacksaw

/ (ˈhækˌsɔː) /

noun

a handsaw for cutting metal, with a hard-steel blade in a frame under tension

verb -saws, -sawing, -sawed, -sawed or -sawn (-ˌsɔːn)

(tr) to cut with a hacksaw

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012