drop hammer
- noun
- Specialized
:
martillo de caída
- The skilled worker used the drop hammer to shape the steel parts for the machinery.
Examples
-
She glanced up briefly and said, "Don't worry, it's only Number Two." When I continued to stare, she explained, "Number Two is one of the largest drop hammers in the country."
Fiction book (1993) -
The factory installed a new drop hammer to improve their metal forging process.
-
After adjusting the settings, the technician turned on the drop hammer to begin forging the metal.
Synonyms
A heavy machine that shapes hot metal by dropping a large hammer
A machine that shapes metal by dropping a heavy weight onto it
A machine that uses air or electricity to hit metal and rock repeatedly
How Powerful
- Specialized
1
4.2
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Archaic
1
9.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun is compositionally built: 'drop' modifies 'hammer' to indicate a hammer that drops a heavy weight, so a learner who knows both words can infer it is a hammer-like device that delivers dropping blows. Although it is a technical metalworking term, the compounding pattern is transparent and follows common cross-linguistic logic, so a B1 learner would grasp the basic meaning.
Etymology
Drop hammer comes from a simple image: a heavy weight is literally dropped like a giant hammer onto hot metal to 'shape' it. The machine 'shapes' metal with that falling blow, so the name tells you its job.