hammer something out

hammer something out
hammer something out
1. Lit. to hammer a dent away; to make a dent even with the surrounding surface. •

I'm going to have to have someone hammer this dent in my fender out.

It will take a while to hammer out the dent.

2. Lit. to expand something by hammering it thinner. •

He hammered the gold out into a very thin sheet.

He hammered out the gold into thin sheets.

3. Fig. to arrive at an agreement through argument and negotiation. •

The two parties could not hammer a contract out.

At last, we were able to hammer out an agreement.

4. Fig. to play something on the piano. •

She hammered the song out loudly and without feeling.

Listen to John hammer out that song on the piano.


Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.

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  • hammer out — verb discuss vehemently in order to reach a solution or an agreement The leaders of the various Middle Eastern countries are trying to hammer out a peace agreement • Syn: ↑thrash out • Hypernyms: ↑hash out, ↑discuss, ↑talk over • Verb Fram …   Useful english dictionary

  • hammer — noun 1》 a tool consisting of a heavy metal head mounted at the end of a handle, used for breaking things and driving in nails.     ↘an auctioneer s mallet, tapped to indicate a sale. 2》 a part of a mechanism that hits another, e.g. one exploding… …   English new terms dictionary

  • hammer — ▪ I. hammer ham‧mer 1 [ˈhæmə ǁ ər] noun COMMERCE come/​go under the hammer to be sold at an auction: • The paintings come under the hammer at Sotheby s in November.   [m0] ▪ II. hammer hammer 2 …   Financial and business terms

  • Something — Single par The Beatles extrait de l’album Abbey Road Face A Something Face B Come Together Sortie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • hammer out something — hammer out (something) to create an agreement or solution to a problem. After months of just talk, we have begun to hammer out a deal which will join our two companies. We d been arguing about the issue for weeks, so the four of us got together… …   New idioms dictionary

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