pickaxe

US pickax

/ (ˈpɪkˌæks) /

Save This Word!

noun

a large pick or mattock

verb

to use a pickaxe on (earth, rocks, etc)

QUIZ

TAKE JOY IN ACING THIS QUIZ ON “PRIDE” SYNONYMS

Hold your head up high as you embark on this quiz that explores some of the synonyms and meanings of “pride.”

Question 1 of 7

What does "dignity" mean?

showing self-respect

treating others with kindness

acting selfishly

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Word Origin for pickaxe

C15: from earlier pikois (but influenced also by axe), from Old French picois, from pic pick ²; compare also pique 1

Words nearby pickaxe

pick apart, pick a quarrel, pickaroon, pick at, pickax, pickaxe, Pick cell, picked, picked over, pickeer, Pickens

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

How to use pickaxe in a sentence

An artist in New Mexico has spent decades chiseling out fantastical caves from the mountains, one pickaxe swing at a time.
New Mexico’s Amazing Man-Made Caves|Nina Strochlic|December 12, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The mention of “dig” is as likely to make us think of pickaxe as of spade.
Assimilative Memory|Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)
This light apparently disturbed the thieves, for they departed with their burden and the pickaxe and retraced their steps.
The King's Post|R. C. Tombs
These evidently had not assisted the gang to any great extent, as they found it necessary to use a heavy pickaxe.
The King's Post|R. C. Tombs

Tha oftin go to sleep standing, and sum times pitch over, and when tha dew, tha enter the ground like a pickaxe.
Josh Billings, Hiz Sayings|Henry Wheeler Shaw
The accompanying engraving is a representation of the old sexton, with his spade, pickaxe, and other emblems of office.
The New Guide to Peterborough Cathedral|George S. Phillips