sledgehammer 1 of 3

noun

Definition of sledgehammernext
as in mallet
a large, heavy hammer with a long handle broke up the concrete using a sledgehammer

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sledgehammer

2 of 3

adjective

as in heavy-handed

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Dissimilar Words

sledgehammer

3 of 3

verb

as in to cane

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of sledgehammer
Noun
In the 1970s, Disabled students in Berkeley took sledgehammers to curbs and built ramps themselves. — Keely Cat-Wells, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Investigators on Monday were asking the public to help find masked suspects who used sledgehammers to smash display cases and steal more than $200,000 worth of jewelry at a store in Yuba City’s mall. — Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 10 Aug. 2026
Adjective
And Sundwall said that, in retrospect, state health officials took a sledgehammer approach to mitigating the pandemic, such as school closings in 2020, when the state could have taken a more surgical tack. — Bethany Rodgers, The Salt Lake Tribune, 27 Sep. 2021 The Academy Award winner quickly turned into a sledgehammer pro, getting involved in breaking through walls and ripping out fixtures. — Vanessa Etienne, PEOPLE.com, 9 July 2021
Verb
Under cover of darkness, a squad of SEALs enters a two-story apartment building, slips upstairs, and sledgehammers its way through a wall, awakening a family on the other side. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 4 Apr. 2025 The move means the 7-foot Kiwi will be under contract for the next three seasons and signals that at a time when the game is becoming increasingly perimeter-oriented, the Pelicans will try to sledgehammer their way to wins. — Christian Clark, NOLA.com, 24 Nov. 2020 See All Example Sentences for sledgehammer
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sledgehammer
  1. mallet
  2. heavy-handed
  3. cane
  4. hammer
  5. jackbooted
  6. stab
  7. baton
  8. oppressive
Noun
  • This makes things all the more disorienting when, near the final act, Greg’s leg is chomped off by an allosaurus mid-mallet-fight, before the dino proceeds to eat him headfirst.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 13 Aug. 2026
  • In this 1970 photo, a 9-year-old Diana is holding a croquet mallet during a game at Itchenor, West Sussex.
    — Giovana Gelhoren, InStyle, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of mallet
Adjective
  • But White House officials remain highly skeptical of heavy-handed interventions in the AI industry, especially ones that might be perceived as allowing for ground to be lost to China.
    — Billy Perrigo, Time, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Its attempts to do so, most notably by interweaving elements of 1939’s The Wizard of Oz — including a CGI lion voiced by Colman Domingo — are heavy-handed acts of fan service that feel arbitrary.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of heavy-handed
Verb
  • Singapore’s education minister has confirmed that teachers are allowed to use caning to discipline unruly students in certain cases.
    — Jack Guy, CNN Money, 6 May 2026
  • In 1994, American teenager Michael Fay was caned at a Singaporean prison for vandalism, a day after his sentence was reduced from six lashes to four in response to an appeal by President Bill Clinton.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 5 May 2026
Definition of cane
Noun
  • The Citrus Heights Police Department said on Monday that officers responded Sunday afternoon to a report of a man running from the mall with a bag and hammer following a robbery at a Kay Jewelers store.
    — Richard Ramos, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Hammerheads stand out from other shark species by the distinctive shape of their heads, which stick out perpendicular to their bodies in the shape of, well, a hammer.
    — Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of hammer
Adjective
  • Karol let those lines here serve as her brief indictment of the present, jackbooted environment around immigration and repression in the United States.
    — Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2026
  • Hungary under his rule is far from a jackbooted dictatorship, but its democracy is diverging markedly from that of many of its partners in the European Union.
    — Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 6 Apr. 2018
Definition of jackbooted
Verb
  • Texas Department of Criminal Justice A Texas judge has denied a bid for a new trial for Karmelo Anthony, who had been sentenced to 35 years in prison for fatally stabbing a fellow student at a high school track meet.
    — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Here are key takeaways The victim was participating in but off camera during a campaign commercial for Fresno County Superior Court judge candidate Ashley Paulson when he was stabbed, law officials said in a Friday news conference.
    — Bob Rodriguez, Sacbee.com, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of stab
Noun
  • The Omaha Police Department said officers will continue to carry tasers, batons, OC spray and firearms.
    — Kathy McCormack, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Under the baton of music director and early music specialist Peter Whelan, the orchestra starts the day with a program featuring court music from Baroque France.
    — Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of baton
Adjective
  • However, a time has come where the weight of those dreams and ambitions has become surprisingly oppressive.
    — Leigh Blickley, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Aug. 2026
  • About the jail conditions The Sunday afternoon heat surrounding volunteers contrasts with what detainees describe as an oppressive cold inside.
    — Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of oppressive

Browse Nearby Words

sledged
sledgehammer
sledgehammered
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Cite this Entry

“Sledgehammer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sledgehammer. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of sledgehammer for Spanish Speakers

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