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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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
-
The scenes echoed earlier playoff celebrations, including a massive watch-party gathering of roughly 7,000 people in Bryant Park during Game 2 that turned violent and destructive, according to a law enforcement official.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
14 June 2026
-
Maclean’s work traffics in deep fakes and glitch aesthetics, rainbow cuteness and the tropes of pulp—but these are set against violent dystopias and a world of cruelties borne, especially, by women (see her 2018 video Make Me Up as an example).—
Eugenie Brinkema,
ARTnews.com,
14 June 2026
Adverb
-
Nieves agreed that his leisure time and focus changed sharply after the birth of his child, Hudson, now 3 years old, as did his friend group updates.—
Andrew J. Campa,
Los Angeles Times,
19 June 2026
-
As a show of their doubt, top Iranian officials have vowed to sharply retaliate if the US violates the deal.—
Lou Robinson,
CNN Money,
19 June 2026
Adjective
-
So playing characters who were so ferocious and bold and confident and determined and all that helped me profoundly in my personal life.—
Brande Victorian,
HollywoodReporter,
18 June 2026
-
Your ferocious work ethic and absolutely unshakable moral fiber.—
Scott Bauer,
Los Angeles Times,
18 June 2026
Adverb
-
It was violently suppressed by Seoul’s military government at the time, which deployed troops, tanks and helicopters, leaving hundreds dead or injured.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
15 June 2026
-
Many also reference Oscarville, a predominantly Black community whose residents were violently expelled from Forsyth County in 1912 before the land was eventually submerged beneath the lake decades later.—
Zachary Bynum,
CBS News,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
Publishers must also navigate changing consumer behavior, rising shipping costs and a fierce attention economy.—
Josh Rivera,
USA Today,
14 June 2026
-
The thing everyone, from the NCAA’s fiercest critics to its most loyal defenders, understood had to remain nonnegotiable.—
Eddie Brown,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 June 2026
Adverb
-
Seksan Mongkhonkhamsao/Getty Images Few assets are protected as fiercely as a retirement account.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
15 June 2026
-
Having introduced that fiercely luminous piece in 2023, Dudamel brought it back in March, placing it on the second half of a concert that began with Beethoven’s Seventh.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
The roaring bassline slithers beneath a wavering flute note before the floor gives out, and the song begins its fast and furious descent.—
Kiana Mickles,
Pitchfork,
12 June 2026
-
Wildlife advocates are furious.—
Ted Williams,
Denver Post,
12 June 2026
Adverb
-
As in the Assembly on Monday, Republicans spoke vehemently against the taxes but had little chance at fracturing the Democrat supermajority.—
Andrew Graham,
Sacbee.com,
18 June 2026
-
Simmons vehemently disputed the idea that the program wasn’t tailored to specific historical policies.—
Safiyah Riddle,
Fortune,
17 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hammer-and-tongs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hammer-and-tongs. Accessed 22 Jun. 2026.
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