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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.

jackhammer British  
/ ˈdʒækˌhæmə /

noun

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

"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

Etymology

Origin of jackhammer

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

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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 • Feb. 14, 2026

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 • Sep. 25, 2025

Let’s say you’re out on some rugged outcropping and you need to jump on your jackhammer for a few minutes.

From Slate • Jul. 18, 2024

A tiny, transparent fish makes a sound as loud as a jackhammer, scientists have discovered.

From BBC • Feb. 26, 2024

My heart’s punching my ribs now, rapid-fire like a jackhammer, and my muscles tense with the energy that will catapult me forward.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.