maul

noun

\ ˈmȯl

Definition of maul

(Entry 1 of 2)

: a heavy often wooden-headed hammer used especially for driving wedges also : a tool like a sledgehammer with one wedge-shaped end that is used to split wood

maul

verb

mauled; mauling; mauls

Definition of maul (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : beat, bruise

2 : mangle sense 1

3 : to handle roughly

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Examples of maul in a Sentence

Verb A bear killed one hiker and badly mauled the other. demonstrators who claimed that they had been mauled by the police

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The constant tone of derision in all their conversations would split them apart faster than a maul splits a log. — Dominic Pino, National Review, 27 May 2021 Did a Bigfoot maul and kill three men on a cannabis farm in Northern California? — Ew Staff, EW.com, 20 Apr. 2021 Years of experience lends one the ability to look at a chunk of wood and figure out where the knots are and where to strike and split with the splitting maul. — Steve Meyer, Anchorage Daily News, 5 Apr. 2020 Paylor, a 6-foot-5, 235-pound sophomore lock, was dragged down by the neck by an opponent, who held Paylor’s neck in the crook of his arm as the maul (a cluster of players) collapsed. — Scott Ostler, SFChronicle.com, 12 Apr. 2020 This time the ball was adjudged to have been passed forward in the maul -- a controversial decision which left English supporters in the crowd shaking their heads. — Matias Grez, CNN, 26 Oct. 2019 Trailing 12-0 after eight minutes, the Welsh were also 19-10 behind and being dominated by France when Vahaamahina elbowed Wales flanker Aaron Wainwright in the face in a maul and was shown a red card in the 49th minute. — Steve Douglas, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Oct. 2019 Uruguay flanker Santiago Civetta’s yellow card for a professional foul opened the way for a Wales penalty try from a rolling maul, and 21-6. — San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Oct. 2019 Fidow collapsed a maul to earn a first yellow card. — San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Sep. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb These lapses maul the credibility of the mainstream media at a time when critics see them as straightforward confirmation of their suspicions: that collusive media outlets assign false narratives to their foot soldiers. — Washington Post, 1 May 2021 Jon Gruden has constructed an impressive offense that can strike deep, QB Derek Carr now armed with an array of downfield options, and/or simply maul opponents with jackhammer RB Josh Jacobs. — Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 11 Nov. 2020 Teams with simple schemes and strong veteran cores have generally fared better, but only when the coronavirus doesn’t maul their depth charts. — Laine Higgins, WSJ, 5 Oct. 2020 Mark Matheny might not have survived had not his hunting partner emptied the contents of a pepper-spray canister into the face of the bear that was mauling him. — Keith Mccafferty, Field & Stream, 27 May 2020 Hooper, 25, is a solid but not stunning in-line blocker, who is better suited to chipping defenders than mauling them. — Jim Mcbride, BostonGlobe.com, 18 Jan. 2020 The Tigers have been mauling opponents for the last two months, but the ACC has not provided Clemson any top-flight competition. — Ralph D. Russo, Houston Chronicle, 8 Dec. 2019 The lone win came in Houston in 2018, when the Tigers mauled him with four home runs in a 6-3 victory. — Chris Thomas, Detroit Free Press, 21 Aug. 2019 The late Greek writer Oppian’s five-book poem on fishing ends with a sponge-diver mauled to death by creatures of the deep, his colleagues grieving over his remains. — Gregory Hays, The New York Review of Books, 27 May 2020

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

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Last Updated

8 Jun 2021

Cite this Entry

“Maul.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/maul. Accessed 19 Jun. 2021.

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More Definitions for maul

maul

verb

English Language Learners Definition of maul

: to attack and injure (someone) in a way that cuts or tears skin : to attack (someone) and cause a bloody injury

: to touch or handle (someone) in a rough sexual way

See the full definition for maul in the English Language Learners Dictionary

maul

noun

\ ˈmȯl

Kids Definition of maul

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a heavy hammer used especially for driving wedges or posts

2 : a sledgehammer with one wedge-shaped end that is used to split wood

maul

verb

mauled; mauling

Kids Definition of maul (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : to attack and injure by biting, cutting, or tearing flesh Not wishing to be mauled by the dogs … Curly had remained outside the gate …— Carl Hiaasen, Hoot

2 : to handle roughly