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

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Question 1 of 7

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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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

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

Clad in a blue, striped button-down, a silver watch adorning his left wrist, Huckabee beams on the cover.
Huckabee 2016: Bend Over and Take It Like a Prisoner!|Olivia Nuzzi|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
That article noted that the F-35 does not currently have the ability to down-link live video to ground troops,.
Pentagon Misfires in Stealth Jet Scandal|Dave Majumdar|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A grand juror in the Ferguson case is suing to be able to explain exactly what went down in the courtroom.
Politicians Only Love Journalists When They're Dead|Luke O’Neil|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The gunman then burst from the restaurant and fled down the street with the other man.
Shot Down During the NYPD Slowdown|Michael Daly|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST

My doctor insisted that once I filed this piece I lie down on my bed and not get out.
I Tried to Warn You About Sleazy Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in 2003|Vicky Ward|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The bride elect rushes up to him, and so they both step down to the foot-lights.
Physiology of The Opera|John H. Swaby (AKA "Scrici")
I take the Extream Bells, and set down the six Changes on them thus.
Tintinnalogia, or, the Art of Ringing|Richard Duckworth and Fabian Stedman
His wife stood smiling and waving, the boys shouting, as he disappeared in the old rockaway down the sandy road.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
So he bore down on the solemn declaration that she stood face to face with a prison term for perjury.
The Bondboy|George W. (George Washington) Ogden
Do not the widow's tears run down the cheek, and her cry against him that causeth them to fall?
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|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

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