Ron in Gloverville, South Carolina, wonders about the phrase since hatchet was hammer, which some use to mean “for a long period of time,” as in My family has lived here since hatchet was hammer. Another phrase he’s heard indicating the same thing...
A Green Bay, Wisconsin, caller is curious about her mother’s playful interjections. If someone said, “Well,” her mother would add, “Well, well. Three holes in the ground.” If someone started a sentence with...
pass a bill under the hammer v. phr.— «Thousands of bills were considered during the legislative session and 466 roll call votes were taken. The vast majority of bills are voted unanimously to either pass or fail out of committee and the...
leaverite n.— «I always carry a rock hammer and a gunny sack, and when I see a likely piece of jasper or agate, I chip a corner to see how it holds up. Like as not, the whole stone may shatter making it into leaverite (leave-‘er...
hammer n.— «Amateur, or “ham,” radios have connected people worldwide since the early 1900s. The device might seem technologically outdated, but it’s far from forgotten.…Sunday was not only a special day for fathers but...
hammer-in n.— «At a hammer-in held last Saturday at the home of New Bedford’s George Rebello, a couple dozen knife makers from across New England and New Jersey forged, hammered and shaped steel into handsome knives.…Rebello founded...
