pickaxe

British  

/ ˈpɪkˌæks /

noun

1. a large pick or mattock

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verb

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

Etymology

Origin of pickaxe

C15: from earlier pikois (but influenced also by _axe ), from Old French picois, from pic _pick ²; compare also _pique ¹

Example Sentences

“I’m still hitting the wrong buttons here, I’m not used to the controls,” Shapiro said as he limply gestured his pickaxe toward a stone laden with glowing rubies.

From Slate • Mar. 24, 2023

The women quietly passed around words of sympathy and encouragement, while Abdiwali's father took turns with the other men, swinging a pickaxe into the hard, dry earth.

From BBC • Oct. 16, 2022

To answer that, Povich's colleague Gordon Elliott ran to a local firehouse, procured a pickaxe and took a few theatrical digs at the great concrete symbol of communism.

From Salon • Sep. 25, 2022

But one day, some civic notable will stand on a concrete riverbank with a gold-painted pickaxe, and take a mighty and symbolic swing at L.A.’s environmental Berlin Wall.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 1, 2022

I spent a week with a pickaxe and shovel digging postholes.

From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson