hatchet job

noun

1. a maliciously destructive critique or act.

   The special committee has done a hatchet job on the new proposal.

hatchet job

noun

1. informal,  a malicious or devastating verbal or written attack

Word History and Origins

Origin of hatchet job¹

First recorded in 1940–45

Idioms and Phrases

see hatchet man, def. 2.