pickax

American  

[pik-aks] / ˈpɪkˌæks /

Or pickaxe

noun

plural

pickaxes

1. a pick, especially a mattock.

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verb (used with object)

pickaxed, pickaxing

1. to cut or clear away with a pickax.

verb (used without object)

pickaxed, pickaxing

1. to use a pickax.

Etymology

Origin of pickax

1275–1325; pick ² + ax; replacing Middle English picois < Middle French, Old French; akin to French pic pick ². See pique ¹

Example Sentences

He told the inspectors he has occasionally used a pickax to try to unearth them.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2024

I knew where my father kept his shovel and pickax.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 14, 2023

Johnson's rumpled delivery extends the mileage of what becomes an extended joke that stops being funny after a point, which is Doug's knack for sniffing out goldmines but just missing the X with his pickax.

From Salon • Jul. 21, 2023

Her DNA was found on a pickax on Daybell’s property, according to testimony from a forensic investigator.

From Seattle Times • May 10, 2023

Howard had already spent three years combing the Southwest for ancient bones, crawling into rattlesnake caves and taking a pickax to rock faces.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann