as in violent
marked by bursts of destructive force or intense activity
the scuffle escalated into a hammer-and-tongs fight
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in sharply
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hammer-and-tongs
Chris Wheatley, Longreads, 16 July 2024
The action on Nevarro is crisp and well-presented, highlighted by the Armorer taking out the sniper’s nest singlehandedly with only her hammer and tongs as weapons.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2023
The two conservative groups that brought the case were targeted by Harris in 2012-13, right around the time the IRS was going hammer and tongs after Tea Party groups.
—Dan McLaughlin, National Review, 1 July 2021
Two teams who seem destined to slug it out in the lower reaches of the table this season going hammer and tongs at each other never makes for a good watch.
—SI.com, 18 Sep. 2019
With two moderate Pyrenean climbs, Thursday’s Stage 12 from Toulouse, where cassoulet and rugby are both big, wasn’t tough enough for Thomas and his rivals to go at each other hammer and tongs.
—Washington Post, 18 July 2019
The way to stand out from the others is to go hammer and tongs for the opponents’ jugulars, or to try to sound more extreme than the others.
—Jim Jones, idahostatesman, 18 May 2018
Adverb
In 1971, authors Norman Mailer and Gore Vidal went at it hammer and tongs live on late-night TV in a showdown that allegedly spilled over into violence.
—Chris Wheatley, Longreads, 16 July 2024
The action on Nevarro is crisp and well-presented, highlighted by the Armorer taking out the sniper’s nest singlehandedly with only her hammer and tongs as weapons.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2023
The two conservative groups that brought the case were targeted by Harris in 2012-13, right around the time the IRS was going hammer and tongs after Tea Party groups.
—Dan McLaughlin, National Review, 1 July 2021
Two teams who seem destined to slug it out in the lower reaches of the table this season going hammer and tongs at each other never makes for a good watch.
—SI.com, 18 Sep. 2019
With two moderate Pyrenean climbs, Thursday’s Stage 12 from Toulouse, where cassoulet and rugby are both big, wasn’t tough enough for Thomas and his rivals to go at each other hammer and tongs.
—Washington Post, 18 July 2019
The way to stand out from the others is to go hammer and tongs for the opponents’ jugulars, or to try to sound more extreme than the others.
—Jim Jones, idahostatesman, 18 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hammer-and-tongs
Adjective
-
Safavi said the blackout coincided with violent confrontations in several regions.—
Emma Bussey,
FOXNews.com,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Parallel societies in certain urban areas and rising violent crime statistics linked to some migrant cohorts in countries such as Sweden and Germany led to the dramatic rise of populist and patriotic parties across the continent, from France to Italy to the Netherlands.—
Daniel Ross Goodman,
The Washington Examiner,
9 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Gold and silver prices fell sharply on Friday, snapping a powerful rally that has seen the metals shatter multiple records this year.—
Lee Ying Shan,
CNBC,
30 Jan. 2026
-
These winds will combine with dry, powdery snow to cause blowing and drifting snow, sharply reducing visibility and making travel hazardous even after snowfall rates decrease.—
Briana Waxman,
CNN Money,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
What Lee did not anticipate was the iron resolve, the ferocious tenacity, of the Union defenders.—
Jamelle Bouie,
Mercury News,
29 Jan. 2026
-
But nobody is just strong and ferocious, and nobody is just a saint.—
Marta Balaga,
Variety,
28 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Noem said Pretti had approached officers with a handgun and reacted violently when agents attempted to disarm him, prompting an agent to fire in self-defense.—
Sarah N. Lynch,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Thousands of white farmers in Zimbabwe had their land violently seized in the 2000s under a controversial land reform program intended to redress colonial-era land grabs.—
Preeti Jha,
semafor.com,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Competition remains fierce in the Charlotte region to grab a piece of the lucrative grocery market share.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
13 Jan. 2026
-
But long before the fire destroyed a broad section of the San Gabriel Valley community, a small but fierce army of people devoted themselves to others who were without a home.—
James Rainey,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Federal officials claimed Good tried to weaponize her vehicle, but that account has been fiercely disputed by both local officials and Good's family.—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Serious, even stern, Douglas was highly principled, fiercely uncompromising and personally brave.—
John T. Shaw,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
But as far back as 2024, signs began appearing that the furious pace of construction and the upward spiral of rents wouldn’t continue.—
Don Stacom,
Hartford Courant,
13 Jan. 2026
-
As furious protests enter their third week and bring Iran to the precipice of change, the country’s theocratic government is trying to survive by harshly cracking down on the widening demonstrations.—
Mitchell McCluskey,
CNN Money,
12 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
The men referenced in the files have vehemently denied any criminal association with Epstein, including after the latest release on Friday, and the president has never been accused of wrongdoing by law enforcement.—
David Zimmermann,
The Washington Examiner,
31 Jan. 2026
-
But many in the science community still disagree, vehemently, both with geoengineering proposals and with the rationale for considering them at all.—
Christian Elliott,
The Atlantic,
31 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hammer-and-tongs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hammer-and-tongs. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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