Meanings
present singular third person buries the hatchet · participle present burying the hatchet · participle past buried the hatchet · past buried the hatchet
- idiomaticTo cease fighting or arguing; to reach an agreement, or at least a truce.
They need to calm down and bury the hatchet before someone gets hurt.
Antonyms: take up the hatchet
- humorousslangmedicineTo accidentally leave a surgical instrument inside the patient after an operation.
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo cease fighting or arguing; to reach an agreement, or at least a truce.
Origin
The phrase is an allusion to the figurative or literal practice of putting away the tomahawk at the cessation of hostilities among or by Native Americans in the Eastern United States, specifically during the formation of the Iroquois Confederacy, and in Iroquois custom in general. Weapons were to be buried or otherwise cached in time of peace.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic دَفَنَ الأَحْقَادَ
- دَفَنَ الأَحْقَادَ (dafana l-ʔaḥqāda)to stop fighting or arguing
Catalan enterrar la destral de guerra
- enterrar la destral de guerrato stop fighting or arguing
Chinese Mandarin 化干戈為玉帛, 言歸於好 /言归于好
- 化干戈為玉帛 (huà gāngē wéi yùbó)to stop fighting or arguing
- 言歸於好 /言归于好 (yánguīyúhǎo)to stop fighting or arguing
- 和解 (héjiě)to stop fighting or arguing
- 重修舊好 /重修旧好 (chóngxiūjiùhǎo)to stop fighting or arguing
Czech skončit boj, zakopat válečnou sekeru
- skončit bojto stop fighting or arguing
- zakopat válečnou sekeruto stop fighting or arguing
Dutch de strijdbijl begraven
- de strijdbijl begravento stop fighting or arguing
Finnish haudata sotakirves
- haudata sotakirvesto stop fighting or arguing
French enterrer la hache de guerre
- enterrer la hache de guerreto stop fighting or arguing
German das Kriegsbeil begraben
- das Kriegsbeil begrabento stop fighting or arguing
Hungarian elássa a csatabárdot
- elássa a csatabárdotto stop fighting or arguing
Icelandic að grafa stríðsöxina
- að grafa stríðsöxinato stop fighting or arguing
Irish an chloch a chaitheamh as an muinchille
- an chloch a chaitheamh as an muinchilleto stop fighting or arguing
Italian sotterrare l'ascia di guerra, seppellire l'ascia di guerra
- sotterrare l'ascia di guerrato stop fighting or arguing
- seppellire l'ascia di guerrato stop fighting or arguing
Japanese 和睦する
- 和睦する (waboku suru)to stop fighting or arguing
Norwegian Bokmål begrave stridsøksen
- begrave stridsøksento stop fighting or arguing
Polish zakopywać topór wojenny, zakopać topór wojenny
- zakopywać topór wojennyto stop fighting or arguing
- zakopać topór wojennyto stop fighting or arguing
Portuguese fazer as pazes
- fazer as pazesto stop fighting or arguing
Romanian îngropa securea războiului
- îngropa securea războiuluito stop fighting or arguing
Russian зары́ть топо́р войны́
- зары́ть топо́р войны́ (zarýtʹ topór vojný)to stop fighting or arguing
Spanish hacer las paces, limar asperezas
- hacer las pacesto stop fighting or arguing
- limar asperezasto stop fighting or arguing
- tengamos la fiesta en paz (set phrase; usu. admonitory)to stop fighting or arguing
Swedish begrava stridsyxan, gräva ner stridsyxan
- begrava stridsyxanto stop fighting or arguing
- gräva ner stridsyxanto stop fighting or arguing
Welsh claddu asgwrn y gynnen
- claddu asgwrn y gynnento stop fighting or arguing
Cite this entry
bury the hatchet. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bury%20the%20hatchet
“bury the hatchet.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bury%20the%20hatchet. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bury the hatchet,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bury%20the%20hatchet.
Source: bury the hatchet on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.