Meanings
plural battering rams
- historicalA heavy object used for battering down walls and gates or a siege engine that includes such an object.
- figurativelySomething which acts as a powerful tool against something.
That was expected, I suppose, because during the Trump era, the GOP was a battering ram against truth and reality.
2023 January 6, Peter Wehner, “The GOP Is a Battering Ram Against Truth”, in The Atlantic1 more example
And in the edition of their party newspaper released last week, [the Tories] pledged to Manitobans that they would continue their battering ram approach this time around.
1982 December 11, Frances Russell, “Economic performance buoys Pawley’s position”, in The Vancouver Sun (The Weekend Sun), Vancouver, BC, page A6
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA modern device, usually in the form of a metal bar with handles, chiefly used by police and firefighters to force open locked doors.
Origin
The heads of some battering rams were carved in the shape of a ram, an animal renowned for butting with its head.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek κριός
- κριός (kriós)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Catalan ariet, moltó
- ariettype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- moltótype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Chinese Mandarin 破城槌, 攻城槌
- 破城槌 (pòchéngchuí)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- 攻城槌 (gōngchéngchuí)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Czech beranidlo
- beranidlotype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Danish rambuk
- rambuktype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Dutch stormram
- stormramtype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Esperanto ramo
- ramotype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Finnish muurinmurtaja, muurinsärkijä
- muurinmurtajatype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- muurinsärkijätype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
French bélier
- béliertype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
German Rammbock, Sturmbock
- Rammbocktype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- Sturmbocktype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Greek πολιορκητικός κριός
- πολιορκητικός κριός (poliorkitikós kriós)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Hebrew איל ניגוח
- איל ניגוחtype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Hungarian faltörő kos
- faltörő kostype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Icelandic múrbrjótur
- múrbrjóturtype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Irish reithe cogaidh
- reithe cogaidhtype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Italian ariete, puntone
- arietetype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- puntonetype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- rompimurotype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Japanese 破城槌
- 破城槌 (hajōtsui)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Korean 파성퇴
- 파성퇴 (paseongtoe)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Latin ariēs
- ariēstype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Norwegian Bokmål rambukk
- rambukktype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Persian راک, چکش تیرکوب
- راک (râk)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- چکش تیرکوبtype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- دژکوبtype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Polish taran
- tarantype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Portuguese aríete
- aríetetype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Romanian berbec
- berbectype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Russian тара́н, соко́л
- тара́н (tarán)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- соко́л (sokól)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- со́кол (sókol)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Spanish ariete
- arietetype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Swedish murbräcka
- murbräckatype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Turkish koçbaşı şahmerdan
- koçbaşı şahmerdantype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Ukrainian тара́н
- тара́н (tarán)type of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Welsh hwrdd rhyfel, hwrddbeiriant
- hwrdd rhyfeltype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
- hwrddbeirianttype of siege engine used to smash gates and walls
Cite this entry
battering ram. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/battering%20ram
“battering ram.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/battering%20ram. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “battering ram,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/battering%20ram.
Source: battering ram on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.