Pickaxe
/ˈpɪkˌæks/noun
A tool with a pointed end and an adze or axe-like end, used for breaking hard ground or rock.
Did you know?The first element, pick, is related to words for a pointed tool or pointed action, while axe comes from an ancient Indo-European root that also gave English axe and Latin words for cutting tools.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*peik-
“to cut, mark, or prick with a pointed implement”
Old English
OE
pīc
“a pointed tool or pick”
Old English
OE
æx
“an axe, a chopping tool”
Middle English
ME
pik-ax
“a tool combining a pick and an axe”
Modern English
English
pickaxe
“a hand tool with a pointed pick on one side and an axe-like blade on the other”