sledgehammer

noun

sledge·ham·mer | \ ˈslej-ˌha-mər

Definition of sledgehammer

(Entry 1 of 3)

: a large heavy hammer that is wielded with both hands also : something that resembles a sledgehammer in action

sledgehammer

verb

sledgehammered; sledgehammering; sledgehammers

Definition of sledgehammer (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

: to strike with or as if with a sledgehammer

intransitive verb

: to strike blows with or as if with a sledgehammer

sledgehammer

adjective

Definition of sledgehammer (Entry 3 of 3)

: marked by heavy-handed directness or hard-hitting force trusting in sledgehammer warfare— C. J. Rolo

Examples of sledgehammer in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The second floor is where Saks took a sledgehammer to convention. — Joshua Levine, WSJ, "Saks Doubles Down on Department Stores With New Restaurant in New York City," 15 Jan. 2019 Like, take a gigantic sledgehammer to the leading man and to all the seriousness. — Katherine Lam, Fox News, "Jim Carrey says he wanted to 'destroy' Hollywood, explains his disappearance from spotlight," 16 Aug. 2018 In 1981, amid tensions over Japanese exports and the loss of American jobs, members of the United Autoworkers Local 588 of Ford Motor Co. in Chicago Heights, Ill., used sledgehammers and crowbars to destroy a Toyota Corolla. . — Peter Landers, WSJ, "The Old U.S. Trade War With Japan Looms Over Today’s Dispute With China," 13 Dec. 2018 Collier, with the sledgehammer, crawled through ceiling tiles into a Big Lots store further down the strip mall, at 11672 E. Colonial Dr., Padilla said. — Gal Tziperman Lotan, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Burglar climbed through ceiling tiles into Big Lots store, deputies say," 28 June 2018 Rescuers used sledgehammers to break through the roofs of houses buried in debris up to their rooflines to check for anyone trapped inside. — Sonia Perez D., Fox News, "Only a few of Guatemala volcano's dead have been identified," 5 June 2018 Rescuers used sledgehammers to break through the roofs of houses buried in debris up to their rooflines to check for anyone trapped inside. — Sonia Perez D., chicagotribune.com, "Only a few of Guatemala volcano's dead have been identified," 4 June 2018 The walls have fallen, or at least someone put a sledgehammer through them. — Hayden Dingman, PCWorld, "This week in games: The Xbox 360 controller's continued dominance, Ace Attorney on PC, and The Crew 2's free weekend," 28 Sep. 2018 Noticeably missing from the VMAs performance, however, was the quick cameo Madonna makes partway through the video, reciting a Bible verse while Ariana, wielding a sledgehammer, lip-syncs along. — Andrea Park, Teen Vogue, "Ariana Grande's VMAs 2018 Performance of "God is a Woman" Was a Religious Experience," 21 Aug. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

This aluminum-block five is a beast, spinning out a lag-free 400 horsepower and sledgehammering 354 pound-feet of torque from 1700 rpm all the way to 5850 rpm. — Ezra Dyer, Car and Driver, "Keep Audi Weird! An Ode to the RS3’s Riotous Five-Cylinder Engine," 26 Jan. 2018 Also, remember that sidewalks aren’t that difficult or expensive to sledgehammer out and rebuild a few feet away. — Neil Sperry, San Antonio Express-News, "How to get berries on a yaupon holly," 5 Jan. 2018 Historians have been trying to sledgehammer people into remembering these events. — Washington Post, "Singer, fiddler Rhiannon Giddens: Crossing musical divides," 2 Nov. 2017 Bungling criminal Kylie yells as her ATM robbery goes awry (her partner knocks himself out trying to sledgehammer the machine). — Lincoln Michel, GQ, "Housebound Is a Horror Comedy That Will Actually Make You Laugh," 21 Oct. 2017 Rhett LeCompte of Houma and two of his buddies have sledgehammered a niche on social media that dubs Cajun phrases, accents and topics over iconic movie scenes. — NOLA.com, "Houma resident dubs Cajun sayings over iconic movie scenes," 30 June 2017

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