tomahawk
Americannoun
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a light ax used by the North American Indians as a weapon and tool.
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any of various similar weapons or implements.
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(in Australia) a stone hatchet used by Aboriginal peoples.
verb (used with object)
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to attack, wound, or kill with or as if with a tomahawk.
noun
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a fighting axe, with a stone or later an iron head, used by the North American Indians
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the usual word for hatchet
Other Word Forms
- tomahawker noun
Etymology
Origin of tomahawk
First recorded in 1605–15; from Virginia Algonquian ( English spelling) tamahaac “hatchet,” equivalent to Proto-Algonquian temah- “to cut (it) off” (unattested ) + -a·kan- “instrument for” (unattested)
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Hundreds of pounds of caviar, black truffle, sushi and tomahawk steak have been shipped to Hollywood for the traditional lavish Oscars after-party this Sunday.
From Barron's • Mar. 11, 2026
Scott Baird, of the storied Starlite bar atop the Beacon Grand Hotel in San Francisco, suggests you think of premium cocktails as “the tomahawk rib-eye of the cocktail world.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026
For eight breathtaking seasons, LeBron James has poured his soul into pleasing a passionate fan base such that he still fills Crypto.com Arena with joy and light and tomahawk dunks at age 41.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2026
The Woodwin Pro makes smoking an impressive 100% full-blood waygu tomahawk from Caroland Farms a breeze, and handles a whole spatchcocked turkey just as easily.
From Salon • Nov. 20, 2025
A pipe in the shape of a tomahawk dangles precariously from his mouth.
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.