maul, mall, malle

[Lat. malleus a mallet, a hammer.] 1. Ord . Lang .: A large wooden hammer, adapted for driving wedges, and sometimes called a beetle. "A man that beareth false witne against his neighbor is a maul , and a sword, and a sharp arrow." -Prov . xxv. 18. 2. Military : † (1) A bludgeon with a leaden head carried by an ancient soldier. ( Brewer .) (2) A mallet for driving pickets. The light maul of the United States Artillery Service has a head of elm or hickory, six inches in diameter and eight inches long; handle of ash, one and a half inches in diameter, twenty-four inches long; an iron hoop on each end of the head one inch wide, quarter of an inch thick. mâul (2), adj. [Ger. maler-stock, mahler - stock, from maler =a painter, and stock a stick.] (See compound.) maul-stick, mahl-stick, 8. Art : A round staff, three or four feet long, tapering toward one end, to which is fastened a small ball, covered with cotton wool and soft leather, in order that the canvas may not be injured by its resting upon it. The stick is held in the left hand near the larger extremity, and serves as a rest to the right hand while painting. mâul, v. t. [MAUL (1), s.] 1. To beat, to bruise; to hurt in a coarse, cruel IMG:content-1008.png:[blocks in formation]