as in violent
marked by bursts of destructive force or intense activity
the scuffle escalated into a hammer-and-tongs fight
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as in sharply
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hammer-and-tongs
Chris Wheatley, Longreads, 16 July 2024
The action on Nevarro is crisp and well-presented, highlighted by the Armorer taking out the sniper’s nest singlehandedly with only her hammer and tongs as weapons.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2023
The two conservative groups that brought the case were targeted by Harris in 2012-13, right around the time the IRS was going hammer and tongs after Tea Party groups.
—Dan McLaughlin, National Review, 1 July 2021
Two teams who seem destined to slug it out in the lower reaches of the table this season going hammer and tongs at each other never makes for a good watch.
—SI.com, 18 Sep. 2019
The Reds went hammer and tongs in their efforts to find a second, though their hosts were able to hold off the onslaught until the final 10 minutes of the clash.
—SI.com, 15 Aug. 2019
With two moderate Pyrenean climbs, Thursday’s Stage 12 from Toulouse, where cassoulet and rugby are both big, wasn’t tough enough for Thomas and his rivals to go at each other hammer and tongs.
—Washington Post, 18 July 2019
The way to stand out from the others is to go hammer and tongs for the opponents’ jugulars, or to try to sound more extreme than the others.
—Jim Jones, idahostatesman, 18 May 2018
The way to stand out from the others is to go hammer and tongs for the opponents’ jugulars, or to try to sound more extreme than the others.
—Jim Jones, idahostatesman, 18 May 2018
Adverb
In 1971, authors Norman Mailer and Gore Vidal went at it hammer and tongs live on late-night TV in a showdown that allegedly spilled over into violence.
—Chris Wheatley, Longreads, 16 July 2024
The action on Nevarro is crisp and well-presented, highlighted by the Armorer taking out the sniper’s nest singlehandedly with only her hammer and tongs as weapons.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2023
The two conservative groups that brought the case were targeted by Harris in 2012-13, right around the time the IRS was going hammer and tongs after Tea Party groups.
—Dan McLaughlin, National Review, 1 July 2021
Two teams who seem destined to slug it out in the lower reaches of the table this season going hammer and tongs at each other never makes for a good watch.
—SI.com, 18 Sep. 2019
The Reds went hammer and tongs in their efforts to find a second, though their hosts were able to hold off the onslaught until the final 10 minutes of the clash.
—SI.com, 15 Aug. 2019
With two moderate Pyrenean climbs, Thursday’s Stage 12 from Toulouse, where cassoulet and rugby are both big, wasn’t tough enough for Thomas and his rivals to go at each other hammer and tongs.
—Washington Post, 18 July 2019
The way to stand out from the others is to go hammer and tongs for the opponents’ jugulars, or to try to sound more extreme than the others.
—Jim Jones, idahostatesman, 18 May 2018
The way to stand out from the others is to go hammer and tongs for the opponents’ jugulars, or to try to sound more extreme than the others.
—Jim Jones, idahostatesman, 18 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hammer-and-tongs
Adjective
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Bravo’s family said the 28-year-old was ending a violent relationship.—
Darrell Smith,
Sacbee.com,
9 Apr. 2025
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Adams said the pair had discussed how to combat violent migrant gangs and embedding more New York Police Department officers into federal task forces.—
Michael Dorgan,
FOXNews.com,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Severe thunderstorms will roar to life by the late afternoon in the Mississippi Valley, become more ferocious and pound potentially more than 900 miles of the region – from Louisiana to Minnesota – through the overnight hours.—
Mary Gilbert,
CNN,
13 Mar. 2025
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Ferran’s ragged butterfly Blanche looks at first glance as if she might be blown to smithereens with one gust of Stanley’s ferocious lung power.—
Charles McNulty,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The documentary follows the story of Ángel, a charismatic boy with fierce love for his Guarani roots and a vision for his Paraguayan hometown of Nanawa.—
Lise Pedersen,
Variety,
11 Apr. 2025
-
The Battle of Okinawa lasted 82 days, with fierce fighting on land and sea.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
11 Apr. 2025
Adverb
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Decades-old clips of the pair have resurfaced online showing them arguing fiercely in favor of high tariffs on China.—
Haisten Willis,
The Washington Examiner,
13 Apr. 2025
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While several players are fiercely competing for another shot at the title — including Bryson DeChambeau, Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose — one of the largest prize pools in professional golf is also on the line.—
Jordana Comiter,
People.com,
13 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Not content, Gibbs-White storms towards the penalty area for the return pass, but ends up furious with his team-mate, whose shot is blocked.—
Thom Harris,
New York Times,
9 Apr. 2025
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The ex-girlfriend was hurt, and my roommate who is having the affair is furious with me.—
Philip Galanes,
New York Times,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Overanalyzing every win and loss will make your journey feel more turbulent than necessary.—
Nelson Chu,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
-
Interesting, turbulent life (including 22 years in prison).—
Jay Nordlinger,
National Review,
14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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His season started on a rough note in Australia, where a late mistake on the wet track sent him sliding off, struggling to recover and tumbling down the order.—
Kanzah Maktoum,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
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Two paratroopers were injured after a rough landing that was caught on video at a baseball game in Arizona.—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Analysis of the basaltic (volcanic) rock brought back from the SPA basin by Chang'e 6 yields a mantle source water content of between just 1 and 1.5 μg.g⁻¹ (micrograms — millionths of a gram — per gram of sample).—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
9 Apr. 2025
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Black Sands Beach United States California’s Black Sands Beach, near the tiny town of Shelter Cove, is a 3.5-mile shoreline blanketed in smooth, black pebbles, a result of volcanic rock eroded by waves.—
Mariette Williams,
AFAR Media,
7 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hammer-and-tongs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hammer-and-tongs. Accessed 20 Apr. 2025.
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