hammer

[ ham-er ]

/ ˈhæm ər /

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See synonyms for hammer on Thesaurus.com

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 by together): 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 or together): to hammer out an agreement; to hammer together a plot.

to produce with or by force (often followed by out): 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 by out): 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 by home).

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 by away): He hammered away at his speech for days.

to reiterate; emphasize by repetition (often followed by away): The teacher hammered away at the multiplication tables.

OTHER WORDS FOR hammer

12, 13 knock, bang.

13 strike.

14 resolve, solve, thrash out, work out.

See synonyms for hammer on Thesaurus.com

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

Idioms about hammer

under the hammer, for sale at public auction: The old estate and all its furnishings went under the hammer.

Origin of hammer

First recorded before 1000; Middle English hamer, Old English hamor; cognate with German Hammer “hammer,” Old Norse hamarr “hammer, crag”; originally, a stone weapon; probably akin to Russian kámen' “stone”

OTHER WORDS FROM hammer

ham·mer·a·ble, adjectiveham·mer·er, nounham·mer·like, adjectiveouthammer, verb (used with object)

re·ham·mer, verb (used with object)un·der·ham·mer, noun

Words nearby hammer

Hamlyn, Hamm, hammam, Hammarskjöld, Hammarskjöld, Dag, hammer, hammer and sickle, hammer and tongs, hammer away at, hammerbeam, hammer blow

Other definitions for hammer (2 of 2)

Hammer

[ ham-er ]

/ ˈhæm ər /

noun

Armand, 1898–1990, U.S. businessman and art patron.

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

How to use hammer in a sentence

A pick hammer sits at the top of the handle to allow users to break ice with a tapping motion, while the spike at the bottom offers more traditional stabbing functionality.
Best ice pick: A versatile winter tool for camping and more|PopSci Commerce Team|February 25, 2021|Popular-Science
Complete your set with a cutting mat, metal rulers and squares, some sponges, and a rubber or wooden hammer—any other type of hammer can damage the leather.
Everything you need to know to start leatherworking|Sandra Gutierrez G.|February 19, 2021|Popular-Science
The group, often armed with guns and other weapons such as hammers and baseball bats, regularly rallies on the grounds of the Minnesota Capitol.
Americans across the political spectrum fear what the Capitol attack portends|Annie Gowen, Jenna Johnson, Holly Bailey|January 12, 2021|Washington Post
There were rules and if someone was acting up in the chat you dropped the hammer.
‘The reality is we have to be professional’: Confessions of an ad exec on working amid the chaos at the Capitol|Kristina Monllos|January 11, 2021|Digiday

Papagelis joined forces in Hammer’s Lot with Ken Johnson — “Pinto Ron” — in 1992.
‘Bills Mafia’ waited a generation for a team like this. It’s had to embrace it from afar.|Adam Kilgore|January 7, 2021|Washington Post
Next, the GOP should hammer away at how our roads, bridges, and tunnels are crumbling, and push for an infrastructure initiative.
Bush, Christie, Romney: Who’ll Be the GOP Class Warrior?|Lloyd Green|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If we enter with hammer in hand, we may leave with merely dust and rubble on our faces.
For Rent: Priceless Historic Sites|Elinor Betesh|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In this way, certain cognitive mechanisms can act like a hammer too eager for nails.
Why Are Millennials Unfriending Organized Religion?|Vlad Chituc|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The phrase means, “the nail that sticks out always gets hit by a hammer.”
Sor Juana: Mexico’s Most Erotic Poet and Its Most Dangerous Nun|Katie Baker|November 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Another surveillance video, showing the perpetrator with hammer in hand, is here.
Is Brooklyn Becoming Unsafe for Gays? It Depends On Which Ones|Jay Michaelson|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The noise of the hammer is always in his ears, and his eye is upon the pattern of the vessel he maketh.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
With a hammer the boy knocked off some of the slats of the small box in which Squinty had made his journey.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
I suppose the hammer falls back more slowly from the string, and that makes the tone sing longer.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
He was ready to drop when he reached it, and his heart beat like a hammer against his ribs.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
And then the Monitor's deafening hammer sounded again, and after that, silence.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various

British Dictionary definitions for hammer

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

go under the hammer or come under the hammer to be offered for sale by an auctioneer

hammer and tongs with great effort or energyfighting hammer and tongs

on someone's hammer Australian and NZ 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 hammeringhis pulse was hammering

(intr often foll by away) to work at constantly

(tr) British

to question in a relentless manner
to criticize severely

informal to inflict a defeat on

(tr) slang 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

Derived forms of hammer

hammerer, nounhammer-like, adjective

Word Origin for hammer

Old English hamor; related to Old Norse hamarr crag, Old High German hamar hammer, Old Slavonic kamy stone

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with hammer

hammer

In addition to the idioms beginning with hammer

hammer and tongs
hammer away at
hammer out

also see:

under the hammer

hammer

OTHER WORDS FOR hammer

Idioms about hammer

Origin of hammer

OTHER WORDS FROM hammer

Words nearby hammer

Other definitions for hammer (2 of 2)

Words related to hammer

How to use hammer in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for hammer

Derived forms of hammer

Word Origin for hammer

Other Idioms and Phrases with hammer