Awl definition

ôl
awls
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Frequency:
A pointed tool for making holes, as in wood or leather.
noun
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A small, pointed tool for making holes in wood, leather, etc.
noun
2
2
The definition of an awl is a small tool with a sharp point that is used to punch holes in leather and wood.

A person using a tool to pierce holes in a belt is an example of a person using an awl.

noun
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1
A pointed instrument for piercing small holes, as in leather or wood; used by shoemakers, saddlers, cabinetmakers, etc. The blade is differently shaped and pointed for different uses, as in the brad awl, saddler's awl, shoemaker's awl, etc.
noun
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Other Word Forms

Noun

Singular:
awl
Plural:
awls

Origin of awl

  • Middle English al, aul from Old English æl German Ahle awl and Sanskrit ārā goad, awl

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • Middle English aul, alle, al, from Old English æl, from Proto-Germanic *ēlō (compare East Frisian älst, Dutch aal, German Ahle), from Proto-Indo-European *Hóleh₂ (compare Khotanese aiysna, Sanskrit अरा (árā))

    From Wiktionary

Awl Sentence Examples

  • His weapons, tools and other appliances such as the hammer, hatchet, spear, knife, awl, thread, net, canoe, &c., are the evident rudimentary analogues of what still remains in use among Europeans.

  • At the last SA conference, the SWP tried to exclude the awl from the executive.

  • This year the AWL's national council was reduced from 26 to 23 members - which still seems too bulky.

  • Eye scent this poem threw it I am shore ewe awed too no, Its letter perfect awl the whey.

  • In 1872 he was nominated for the presidency by the "Bourbon" Democrats, who refused to support Horace Greeley, awl by the "Labour Reformers"; he declined the nomination but received 21, 559 votes.

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Words near awl in the Dictionary