loggerhead

[ law-ger-hed, log-er- ]

noun

1. a thick-headed or stupid person; blockhead.
2. loggerhead turtle.
3. loggerhead shrike.
4. a ball or bulb of iron with a long handle, used, after being heated, to melt tar, heat liquids, etc.
5. a rounded post, in the stern of a whaleboat, around which the harpoon line is passed.
6. a circular inkwell having a broad, flat base.

loggerhead

/ ˈlɒɡəˌhɛd /

noun

1. Also calledloggerhead turtle a large-headed turtle, Caretta caretta, occurring in most seas: family Chelonidae
2. loggerhead shrike
   a North American shrike, Lanius ludovicianus, having a grey head and body, black-and-white wings and tail, and black facial stripe
3. a tool consisting of a large metal sphere attached to a long handle, used for warming liquids, melting tar, etc
4. a strong round upright post in a whaleboat for belaying the line of a harpoon
5. archaic.
   a blockhead; dunce
6. at loggerheads
   engaged in dispute or confrontation

Derived Forms

• ˈloggerˌheaded, adjective

Other Words From

• logger·headed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of loggerhead¹

1580–90; logger block of wood (first attested alone in 18th century) + head

Word History and Origins

Origin of loggerhead¹

C16: probably from dialect logger wooden block + head

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. at loggerheads, engaged in a disagreement or dispute; quarreling:

   They were at loggerheads over the distribution of funds.

Example Sentences

These two communities were at loggerheads after elections in 2007 - ethnic violence in which 1,200 people died nationwide.

From BBC

Four of the loggerhead turtles were found along the Cornish coast, one was found in Devon and another was rescued at Anglesey in Wales.

From BBC

Meanwhile, Addis Ababa and Cairo have been at loggerheads for more than a decade over Ethiopia's construction of a vast hydroelectric dam on the River Nile.

From BBC

An injured loggerhead sea turtle has been released back into the wild.

From BBC

The fire also swept through parts of the island that have rare habitats for sensitive plant and animal species found nowhere else, such as the endangered San Clemente loggerhead shrike, a carnivorous songbird.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• tortoise