hammer out

verb

1. to shape or remove with or as if with a hammer
2. to form or produce (an agreement, plan, etc) after much discussion or dispute

Idioms and Phrases

Work out with considerable effort, as in It took weeks of negotiations to hammer out an acceptable compromise . This usage likens intellectual effort to shaping metal with the blows of a hammer. [Mid-1700s]

Example Sentences

Many of the details around the ethics commission are meant to be hammered out once voters have already approved the measure, he said.

From Los Angeles Times

The text – which could still change once Commonwealth leaders arrive – has been hammered out by diplomats ahead of the summit.

From BBC

In rejecting the measure, the governor again asserted — as he has for years on bills costing money — that fiscal issues should be hammered out when he and the Legislature negotiate a state budget in June.

From Los Angeles Times

The agreement extended an existing contract until Jan. 15, giving dockworkers and the United States Maritime Alliance time to hammer out the details.

From Salon

The US president and Kamala Harris, his vice-president, met negotiators in the Situation Room to hammer out a proposal, as protests engulfed Israel on Monday over the weekend deaths of six hostages in Gaza.

From BBC

Related Words

• establish
• negotiate
• settle
• thrash out
• work out