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Glite Dictionary
pick mattock

pick mattock

8.6
A tool with a pointed end and a flat blade for digging and breaking hard soil or rock
  • noun
  • /pɪk ˈmætək/
  • Specialized
translation icon : pico
  • The gardener used a pick mattock to break through the rocky ground.

Examples

  • He swung the pick mattock to loosen the packed clay along the path.

  • The farmer bought a new pick mattock from the hardware store.

  • A pick mattock is essential for grubbing out tree roots in hard soil.

  • He used a pick mattock to break up the rocky ground.

  • A pick mattock is essential for grubbing out tree roots in hard soil.

  • The gardener used a pick mattock to break through the rocky ground.

  • He swung the pick mattock to loosen the packed clay along the path.

Synonyms

mattock
vspick mattock
1 9.0

A hand tool with a long handle and a flat blade for digging and chopping soil

is the specific combined pick and adze for breaking very hard soil or rock
pick-mattock
vspick mattock
  • Specialized
8.4

A hand tool with a pointed end and a flat blade for digging and breaking hard rocky soil

is the same tool name but written without a hyphen

Surface Forms

pick mattock singular
pick mattocks plural

Morphology

pick + mattock

The meaning is directly compositional: 'pick' (a pointed, heavy tool) + 'mattock' (a hand tool for breaking soil) yields a type of mattock that has a pick-like head for digging or breaking hard ground. This noun–noun compound follows a common, predictable tool-naming pattern and would be inferable by a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

Pick mattock combines pick (a pointed tool) and mattock (a tool with a flat digging blade). Picture a heavy hand tool with a sharp point on one side and a flat blade on the other, used to break hard ground and pull out roots, so it means 'a hand tool for digging and breaking hard soil'.