sledgehammers 1 of 2

noun

plural of sledgehammer
as in mallets
a large, heavy hammer with a long handle broke up the concrete using a sledgehammer

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sledgehammers

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of sledgehammer
as in cudgels

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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 sledgehammers
Noun
Demonstrators wearing masks tore bricks from the walls outside homes and smashed sidewalks with sledgehammers to toss at riot police. — CBS News, 11 June 2026 Workers use sledgehammers to pound stakes for the big top, then toss the sledgehammers to each other in a sort of juggling routine. — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 4 June 2026 The men found information on target businesses and used pry bars and sledgehammers to break into buildings and open safes that stored pull-tab proceeds, the complaint states. — Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 28 May 2026 Hailstones crash through glass like sledgehammers. — Kansas City Star, 22 May 2026 Eckert instructed the dads and sons to run a few hundred yards with kettlebells, sledgehammers, and sandbags, then to smash open the sandbags. — Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026 Three thieves used sledgehammers to perform a smash-and-grab at a popular Sherman Oaks mall on Wednesday evening, stealing jewelry and watches before fleeing the scene, authorities said. — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026 Ridglan Farms said in a press release that activists attempted to enter several buildings using sledgehammers, electric saws and crowbars. — Quinn Clark, jsonline.com, 16 Mar. 2026 Wearing hooded sweatshirts and full-face masks, the robbers ordered employees to one part of the room at gunpoint before two of them smashed the glass display cases with sledgehammers, The Charlotte Observer previously reported. — Nick Sullivan march 7, Charlotte Observer, 7 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sledgehammers
  1. batons
  2. spears
  3. canes
  4. clubs
  5. stabs
  6. whips
  7. flails
  8. slashes
Noun
  • Tensions escalated after protesters marching toward Parliament were met with a police crackdown earlier in the week, with officers using batons and tear gas to disperse crowds.
    — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 25 July 2026
  • The demonstrations have become one of the most persistent challenges to Modi’s government in recent years, with thousands returning to the streets even after police used tear gas and batons to disperse marchers.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 25 July 2026
Definition of batons
Verb
  • The midfielder spears an accurate long ball to Yildiz, setting him away into the box.
    — Thom Harris, New York Times, 5 June 2026
Definition of spears
Noun
  • Victim 2, who is a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue employee according to the New York Times, was repeatedly struck with canes and paddles and bled through his underwear and pants because of lacerations to his buttocks, according to the warrant.
    — Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 29 July 2026
  • At the base, blueberry shrubs have multiple canes (or branches) that grow directly out of the earth in clumps.
    — Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 28 July 2026
Definition of canes
Verb
  • That advantage was in large part offset by payments from UEFA’s ‘value pillar’, a mechanism which awards clubs money based upon their coefficient ranking (determined by past performance in European competition) and the size of their nation’s broadcast rights deal for the competition.
    — Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 30 May 2026
  • Their top-30 visits, where NFL clubs host prospects at their facilities to gather further intel, are often smokescreens.
    — Luca Evans, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026
Definition of clubs
Verb
  • In the heat of the moment, Voit’s daughter comes to his rescue and fatally stabs Crowley.
    — Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 24 July 2026
  • In the first five minutes, her Judith stabs a man at a party, escapes on skis and celebrates a job well done by bedding a besotted hottie.
    — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 July 2026
Definition of stabs
Verb
  • Instead of floating crosses in, Saka either whips his deliveries low near the six-yard box or works a slightly more central position to cut the ball back with a firmer connection.
    — Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 26 June 2026
  • The vessel bends, blocks, and whips the wind into complex micro-currents before the air ever hits the sails.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 2 June 2026
Definition of whips
Verb
  • While Rhaenyra flails from one problem to the next, Ormund plots and schemes and uses his wits to undo his enemies.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
  • The movements are entirely reflexive, yet the arm that flails more predicts future handedness with a high level of accuracy.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 13 July 2026
Definition of flails
Verb
  • Applying this rule to back-to-school clothes, summer swimwear, and winter boots takes minimal extra effort (plus a little storage space) and slashes kid clothing budgets in half.
    — Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 31 July 2026
  • Continue reading … DOLLAR DIPLOMACY — Taco Bell slashes prices on lettuce-free favorites to win back wary customers.
    — , FOXNews.com, 31 July 2026
Definition of slashes

Browse Nearby Words

sledgehammering
sledgehammers
sledges
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Cite this Entry

“Sledgehammers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sledgehammers. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.

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