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definitions

hammer blow

noun
  1. a blow from a hammer
  2. a severe shock or setbackLiam's death was a hammer blow
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

Examples from the Web for hammer blow

Historical Examples of hammer blow

  • Then Professor Kellton set his glass on the table, and it sounded like a hammer-blow.

    Graveyard of Dreams

    Henry Beam Piper

  • And we ought to have realized that this was strange, because Soissons nowadays is a sight to strike the heart a hammer-blow.

    Everyman's Land

    C. N. Williamson and A. M. Williamson

  • Knowing all the conditions, Ballard thought the masonry would never withstand the hammer-blow impact of the wreck-laden billow.

    The King of Arcadia

    Francis Lynde