hammer out

verb

hammered out; hammering out; hammers out

transitive verb

: to produce or bring about as if by repeated blows
hammered out an agreement

Examples of hammer out in a Sentence

the city council hammered out new commercial development regulations with input from residents, business owners, and environmental activists
Recent Examples on the Web The changes came more than a week after a team of Egyptian negotiators flew to Israel in late April to hammer out some of the final details of a framework to provide for the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for a pause in fighting and the return of Palestinian prisoners. Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 21 May 2024 Insurers have hammered out about 4,300 large and small contracts with nonprofits and businesses. Angela Hart, NPR, 14 May 2024 Foreman said the bill simply could not be created before Cross hammered out the complex agreement with Stronach, a process that dragged into March even though the track owner was on board with the vision. Childs Walker, Baltimore Sun, 11 Apr. 2024 Policies are hammered out there before coming to the full council for a vote. Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2024 The two are hammering out details of an agreement that would bring the chatbot to iOS 18, according to Bloomberg, which cites people familiar with the matter. Emily Price, PCMAG, 11 May 2024 The findings of groups like Million Marker and Minderoo are especially relevant this month, as the United Nations International Negotiating Committee meets in Ottawa, Canada from April 23 to April 29 to hammer out provisions for an international agreement that would limit global plastic pollution. Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 25 Apr. 2024 Around the same time, a video appeared on the Spotify page for Tortured Poets showing Swift herself sitting at a typewriter, hammering out the same phrase. Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 16 Apr. 2024 The Biden administration has given the space agency until the end of 2026 to hammer out the new system. Aimee Picchi, CBS News, 5 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hammer out.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1632, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hammer out was circa 1632

Dictionary Entries Near hammer out

Cite this Entry

“Hammer out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hammer%20out. Accessed 28 May. 2024.

Kids Definition

hammer out

verb
: to produce or bring about by persistent effort
hammered out an agreement

More from Merriam-Webster on hammer out

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!