Etymologically
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hatchet

Etymology and origin of the English word hatchet

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈhæt͡ʃɪt/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English hachet, borrowed from Old French hachete, a diminutive of hache “axe”,[2][3][4][5][6] probably from Frankish *happja,[3][4][6] related to Old High German happa “sickle, scythe”.[2][3][4] It is perhaps related to Greek kóptein “to strike”.[4][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

A small axe with a short handle, for use with one hand (1307 in Barnhart; 1375 in the OED).[3][7]

Semantic evolution

In Middle English to hang up one's hatchet meant to stop working.[7][4] The phrases to bury the hatchet, “to make peace” (1754), and to take up the hatchet, “to go to war”, come from a Native American custom of burying a tomahawk to conclude peace.[4][7][6] A hatchet face is a narrow, sharp face (1650s),[4] and a hatchet man someone hired to do ruthless or destructive work.[4][7]

Timeline

  • 1307 – a small axe (Barnhart).[3]
  • 1375 – a small axe (OED).[7]
  • 1650s – hatchet-face.[4]
  • 1754 – to bury the hatchet.[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A small, short-handled axe for use in one hand, often with a hammer head opposite the blade.
  2. A tomahawk.

Verb

  1. To cut with a hatchet; figuratively, to cut down or destroy.

Word family

  • hatchet face
  • hatchet job
  • hatchet man
  • hash
  • axe
  • tomahawk

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Hatchet.” Etymologically, 11 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/hatchet. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·