maul

1 of 2

noun

ˈmȯl 

: a heavy often wooden-headed hammer used especially for driving wedges

also : a tool like a sledgehammer with one wedge-shaped end that is used to split wood

maul

2 of 2

verb

mauled; mauling; mauls

transitive verb

1

: beat, bruise

2

: mangle sense 1

3

: to handle roughly

mauler noun

Synonyms

Verb

• maltreat
• manhandle
• mishandle
• rough (up)

Examples of maul in a Sentence

Verb

A bear killed one hiker and badly mauled the other.

demonstrators who claimed that they had been mauled by the police

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Cama’s 7-point try box came in the 74th minute and was a result of the Legion muscling their way to a series of successful scrums, mauls and rucks before Cama punched it over inside the 5-meter line area. —Ivan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Apr. 2024

Using the baton technique, the Mora Companion Spark chops wood like a spitting maul. —Matthew Every, Field & Stream, 4 Jan. 2024

Verb

Just last month, a black bear mauled and injured a 3-year-old girl in a tent at a private campground in Montana. —CBS News, 20 Sep. 2024

The defense has theorized O’Keefe was beaten in the home and mauled by the homeowners’ German shepherd, Chloe, and then tossed out in the snow to die. —Eric Levenson, CNN, 27 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English malle mace, maul, from Anglo-French mail, from Latin malleus; akin to Old Church Slavic mlatŭ hammer, Latin molere to grind — more at meal

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

maul

1 of 2 noun

ˈmȯl 

: a heavy hammer often with a wooden head used especially for driving wedges or posts

maul

2 of 2 verb

1

: to beat and bruise severely

2

: mangle entry 1 sense 1

3

: to handle roughly

mauler noun