jackhammer

American  

[jak-ham-er] / ˈdʒækˌhæm ər /

noun

1. a portable drill operated by compressed air and used to drill rock, break up pavement, etc.

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jackhammer British  

/ ˈdʒækˌhæmə /

noun

1. a hand-held hammer drill, driven by compressed air, for drilling rocks, etc

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Etymology

Origin of jackhammer

An Americanism dating back to 1925–30; jack ¹ + hammer

Example Sentences

Carolyn Hove, raising her voice to be heard over the crew operating a jackhammer in front of her home, asked: “How much more are we supposed to go through?”

From Los Angeles Times

But he turns up the volume on his rich voice so high, and so consistently, that Shakespeare’s verse comes across like the sound of a jackhammer without an off switch.

From The Wall Street Journal

Usually you needed a jackhammer to dig into permafrost, but this ground had disintegrated just from Owen walking on it.

From Literature

In the end, Guadagnino takes a jackhammer to everything he’s spent the last two-plus hours so meticulously building, but not quite in the way one might expect.

From Salon

Crucially, the song avoids the Eurovision cliches of jackhammer dance anthems and windswept balladry – something Remember Monday have in common with this year's favourites.

From BBC

Related Words

• beat
• knock
• plunge
• run
• shoot
• strike
• throw