hand ax
noun
1
: a short-handled ax intended for use with one hand
2
: a prehistoric stone tool having one end pointed for cutting and the other end rounded for holding in the hand
Examples of hand ax in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Witten has lent the hand ax to the Worthing Museum, where it will be displayed until February.
—
Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Dec. 2024
Researchers have previously discovered prehistoric tools in the valley, including another giant hand ax, but never as part of a large-scale excavation.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 July 2023
Our early ancestors apparently knapped the same style of handheld, multipurpose hand ax for 1.6 million years, with only minor tweaks to the template.
—Heather Pringle, Scientific American, 1 Oct. 2016
Archaeological scientist Ellery Frahm holds an obsidian hand ax unearthed in Armenia.
—Gemma Tarlach, Discover Magazine, 12 Apr. 2019
The Neanderthal tools found at the site include a hand ax and small flint tools known as scrapers.
—Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 21 Dec. 2021
While making a hand ax basically involves improving an existing rock’s shape, making blades and points means the toolmaker must have begun by first visualizing the ideal shape of such a tool, then reworking the rock to serve that purpose.
—Brian Handwerk, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Oct. 2020
Olduvai Gorge is the only other bone hand ax dated to more than one million years ago.
—Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 July 2020
The last hand ax at the site dates to 499,000 years ago, before the gap.
—Ann Gibbons, Science | AAAS, 15 Mar. 2018
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Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Dec. 2024
Researchers have previously discovered prehistoric tools in the valley, including another giant hand ax, but never as part of a large-scale excavation.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 July 2023
Our early ancestors apparently knapped the same style of handheld, multipurpose hand ax for 1.6 million years, with only minor tweaks to the template.
—Heather Pringle, Scientific American, 1 Oct. 2016
Archaeological scientist Ellery Frahm holds an obsidian hand ax unearthed in Armenia.
—Gemma Tarlach, Discover Magazine, 12 Apr. 2019
The Neanderthal tools found at the site include a hand ax and small flint tools known as scrapers.
—Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 21 Dec. 2021
While making a hand ax basically involves improving an existing rock’s shape, making blades and points means the toolmaker must have begun by first visualizing the ideal shape of such a tool, then reworking the rock to serve that purpose.
—Brian Handwerk, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Oct. 2020
Olduvai Gorge is the only other bone hand ax dated to more than one million years ago.
—Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 July 2020
The last hand ax at the site dates to 499,000 years ago, before the gap.
—Ann Gibbons, Science | AAAS, 15 Mar. 2018
Dictionary Entries Near hand ax
Cite this Entry
“Hand ax.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hand%20ax. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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