pickax

or pick·axe

[ pik-aks ]

noun

, plural pick·ax·es.

1. a pick, especially a mattock.

verb (used with object)

, pick·axed, pick·ax·ing.

1. to cut or clear away with a pickax.

verb (used without object)

, pick·axed, pick·ax·ing.

1. to use a pickax.

Word History and Origins

Origin of pickax¹

1275–1325; pick ² + ax; replacing Middle English picois < Middle French, Old French; akin to French pic pick ². See pique ¹

Example Sentences

As I leave, men with pickaxes and shovels are making slow progress in the rubble and Hussein prepares to erect a tent on what was left of his home.

From BBC

The Huntsman knocked the pickaxes straight to the ground with his own axe.

From Literature

He first flattened the hillside lot, breaking up dirt with a pickax and moving it until it was even enough to plant trees and park his ambulance.

From Los Angeles Times

He told the inspectors he has occasionally used a pickax to try to unearth them.

From Los Angeles Times

Escaping workers left roof tiles neatly stacked; their pots of lime mortar are still filled, waiting to be used; their trowels and pickaxes remain, although the wooden handles have long since rotted away.

From BBC