maul

UK: /ˈmɔːl/ US: /mɔl/ ,(môl)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

maul /mɔl/   n. mauled, maul•ing. 

[countable]
1. Building a heavy hammer used esp. for driving stakes or wedges.

v. [~ + object]

2. to handle or use roughly:
   The gang was mauling her in the parking lot.
3. to injure by rough treatment:
   The lion tamer was mauled by one of the lions.

maul•er, n. [countable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

maul  (môl), n. 

1. Building a heavy hammer, as for driving stakes or wedges.
2. [Archaic.] a heavy club or mace.

v.t. 

3. to handle or use roughly:
   The book was badly mauled by its borrowers.
4. to injure by a rough beating, shoving, or the like;
   bruise:
   to be mauled by an angry crowd.
5. Building to split with a maul and wedge, as a wooden rail.

Also, mall. 

• Old French maillier, derivative of noun, nominal
• Latin malleus hammer; (verb, verbal) Middle English mallen
• Old French mail mallet, hammer
• (noun, nominal) Middle English malle 1200–50

maul′er, n. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

maul / mɔːl/ verb (transitive)

1. to handle clumsily; paw
2. to batter or lacerate

noun

1. a heavy two-handed hammer suitable for driving piles, wedges, etc
2. a contest between the two packs of forwards to gain control of the ball when it is held by a standing player
   Compare ruck13

Etymology: 13th Century: from Old French mail, from Latin malleus hammer. See mallet

ˈmauler noun