Definition of "hammer" []

• A hand tool consisting of a handle with a head of metal or other heavy rigid material that is attached at a right angle, used for striking or pounding. (noun)
• A tool or device similar in function or action to this striking tool, as: (noun)
• The part of a gunlock that hits the primer or firing pin or explodes the percussion cap and causes the gun to fire. (noun)
• Music One of the padded wooden pieces of a piano that strikes the strings. (noun)
• A part of an apparatus that strikes a gong or bell, as in a clock. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "When building a house, a hammer is an important tool."
• "Sounds like the hammer is a much better tool than kissing but like Carter and Clinton did."
• "Union officials said the Government's defence cuts were to blame for the job losses, which they described as a "hammer blow" to manufacturing, as orders for the Eurofighter Typhoon combat jet slow down."