hammer

noun

ham·mer | \ ˈha-mər

Definition of hammer

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : a hand tool consisting of a solid head set crosswise on a handle and used for pounding

b : a power tool that often substitutes a metal block or a drill for the hammerhead

2 : something that resembles a hammer in form or action: such as

a : a lever with a striking head for ringing a bell or striking a gong

b(1) : an arm that strikes the cap in a percussion lock to ignite the propelling charge

(2) : a part of the action of a modern gun that strikes the primer of the cartridge in firing or that strikes the firing pin to ignite the cartridge

c : malleus

d : gavel

e(1) : a padded mallet in a piano action for striking a string

(2) : a hand mallet for playing on various percussion instruments (such as a xylophone)

3 : a metal sphere thrown for distance in the hammer throw

4 : accelerator sense b

under the hammer

: for sale at auction

hammer

verb

hammered; hammering\ ˈha-mər-iŋ ,

ˈham-riŋ \

Definition of hammer (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

1 : to strike blows especially repeatedly with or as if with a hammer : pound

2 : to make repeated efforts especially : to reiterate an opinion or attitude the lectures all hammered away at the same points

transitive verb

1a : to beat, drive, or shape with repeated blows of a hammer

b : to fasten or build with a hammer

2 : to strike or drive with a force suggesting a hammer blow or repeated blows hammered the ball over the fence tried to hammer me into submission

3 : to criticize severely

Other Words from hammer Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about hammer

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Synonyms for hammer

Synonyms: Verb

beat, draw, forge, pound

Examples of hammer in a Sentence

Verb

He hammered the dent out of the fender. The carpenters were hammering all afternoon. The workers are hammering the studs to the frame. The batter hammered the ball over the fence. Someone tried to hammer him over the head with a club. Many towns were hammered by the hurricane. The typist's fingers were hammering the keys. He was hammering at the door. The rain hammered down on the roof. The home team was hammered 9–0.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Aside from the empowering imagery (at one point, Grande-as-God is shown literally breaking the glass ceiling with a hammer) and the constantly changing hair and makeup, the real scene stealer is the body paint. — Zoe Weiner, Allure, "Makeup Artists Are Recreating Ariana Grande's "God Is a Woman" Body Paint Look," 19 July 2018 While there, Sasser stuck out his index finger, pointed it at his estranged wife and Hall, and cocked his thumb like the hammer of a gun. — Bill Torpy, ajc, "Torpy at Large: When a murderous cop has law-and-order enablers," 5 July 2018 The nickname dates from last winter, when malaria hit Niyonsaba like a sledge hammer while the group was training in South Africa. — Ken Goe, OregonLive.com, "Malaria couldn't stop Francine Niyonsaba, who takes on Caster Semenya in the Prefontaine Classic 800," 24 May 2018 Still, that box must contain gadgetry that would be the envy of 007 - fadeaways abrading opposing hopes like a sander, twisting layups augering through the defense, dunks slamming like hammers. — Bill Livingston, cleveland.com, "LeBron James and the toolbox, the repertoire, the sweep: Bill Livingston (photos)," 7 May 2018 The force of each bite was like a sledge hammer with teeth. — Sarah Schreiber, Good Housekeeping, "This Man Got Attacked by the Same Bear Twice — and Lived to Tell About It," 5 Oct. 2016 Here, the nose inhales whiffs of leather, wood, and polish, while the regular pounding of hammers serves as an audio accompaniment. — Amy Verner, Vogue, "Vogue Got an Exclusive Tour of Chanel’s Ateliers While Tonight’s Métiers d’Art Collection Was Being Made," 5 Dec. 2018 To be more precise, this Ridgid is a hammer drill driver. — Roy Berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, "Ridgid's New Hammer Drill-Driver Is an Escalation of the Power Tools Torque War," 13 Nov. 2018 Wiltshire Police said cathedral alarms sounded Thursday afternoon in the southwestern English city when a person armed with a hammer tried to smash the glass box surrounding the Magna Carta. — Gregory Katz, The Seattle Times, "Man arrested trying to steal Magna Carta from UK cathedral," 26 Oct. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

First-quarter earnings for retailers could take a hit if companies discount prices to draw down inventory, and additional storage costs will only hammer margins further. — Erica E. Phillips, WSJ, "Swamped With Inventory, U.S. Companies Turn to ‘Mobile Storage’," 28 Dec. 2018 The tsunami, which officials believe was caused by a landslide triggered by the eruption of a volcano Saturday night, hammered both sides of the Sunda Strait, a narrow passage between the islands of Sumatra and Java in Indonesia. — Jake Maxwell Watts, WSJ, "‘Child of Krakatau’ Brings Death to Hundreds in Indonesian Tsunami," 24 Dec. 2018 Forced to serve a year for the kind of on-screen antics that are common in American media, her story and Youssef’s hammer home a sobering point. — Janelle Okwodu, Vogue, "Rania Youssef Is the Egyptian Actress Who Faced Obscenity Charges Over a Dress," 4 Dec. 2018 On Sol 44, InSight will deploy its heat probe, and six days later the lander will begin hammering its probe 5 meters down into the Martian surface. — Eric Berger, Ars Technica, "Here’s how NASA will attempt to land on the Red Planet Monday," 26 Nov. 2018 Lately, when there’s been a crash involving Autopilot (and there have been a few), Tesla will inevitably release a statement hammering this point: drivers need to pay attention to the road, and Autopilot does not prevent all accidents. — Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, "Tesla’s Navigate on Autopilot is like Waze on steroids," 6 Nov. 2018 That wasn't the only detail really hammering home the inspiration for Chanel's latest collection: Right there, sitting in the front row, was none other than Baywatch's own Pamela Anderson. — Zoe Weiner, Glamour, "Pamela Anderson Went to Chanel's Beach-Themed Show, so Of Course She Had a 'Baywatch' Moment," 2 Oct. 2018 A few days later he’s getting hammered by the press for some extraordinarily petty bit of trivia. — Lauren Hubbard, Town & Country, "Read Alan Simpson's Full Eulogy Honoring George H.W. Bush," 5 Dec. 2018 Over the next two to three months, InSight will use a robotic arm to deploy its primary two instruments: a seismometer and a self-hammering nail. — Loren Grush, The Verge, "NASA’s InSight successfully lands on Mars after ‘seven minutes of terror’," 26 Nov. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hammer.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.