Hammerers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. People who shape metal by beating it with a hammer ; people who strike or pound things repeatedly with a hammer ; those who attack or criticize someone relentlessly and without letup
2. Metalworkers who forge and beat material into form ; individuals who pound or drive nails and other objects with a hammer ; persistent assailants or critics who keep pressing their blows
3. Craftsmen who work metal by hammering it into shape ; workers who repeatedly strike with a mallet-like tool ; relentless opponents who keep battering someone with harsh attacks

Etymology: "Hammerers" is simply the plural of "hammerer," a compound of "hammer" and the agent suffix "-er," which marks a person who performs an action. The base word "hammer" goes back to Proto-Germanic "*hamaraz," and reached English as Old English "hamor," with the same sense of the striking tool that it has today. The meaning of "hammerer" is therefore literal: someone who hammers, which is why it fits craftspeople who beat metal into shape. The suffix has a longer road. The "-er" ending descends from Latin "-arius," which English received through Old French "-ier" and Middle English "-er," while Old English already had its own "-ere" with the same function. Two separate lines of descent thus merged into one ending, so a word like this combines a Germanic noun with a suffix that came into English partly through the Romance languages.

Synonyms: hammerman, smith, forger