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Added 10 October 2026

pickaxe

/ˈpɪkˌæks/ noun

In Latin: dolābra, picōsa, pīcca Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about pickaxe at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A heavy iron tool with a wooden handle; one end of the head is pointed, the other has a chisel edge.
He was mining stone using a pickaxe.

verb

To use a pickaxe.

Origin

Inherited from Middle English pykeaxe, pecaxe, pyke exe (“pickaxe”), an alteration (due to folk etymology association with pick and axe) of Middle English pikeyse, pikeys, pykois, from Anglo-Norman *pikeis, Old French picois, pecois, from Latin picōsa (“pickaxe”), from picca, ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *pīk (“sharp point, pike”). Doublet of pique and pike.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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