anvil

noun

an·​vil ˈan-vəl How to pronounce anvil (audio)
1
: a heavy usually steel-faced iron block on which metal is shaped (as by hand hammering)
2
: incus
3
: the anvil–shaped top of a cumulonimbus

Illustration of anvil

Illustration of anvil
  • anvil 1

Examples of anvil in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The weight of this game on the Dolphins was oppressive, heavy as hot anvils. —Miami Herald, 14 Sep. 2025 Sorry to be the bearer of good news, what with sports fans here always wary of the next SD-logo’d anvil falling out of the sky. —Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Sep. 2025 And in addition to expanding its Seda business hotel group, which manages almost 3,300 rooms across 12 properties, on the anvil are two new homegrown brands to offer tourists Filipino-style hospitality, says Mariana. —Jonathan Burgos, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2025 The giant billowing clouds can be seen for hundreds of miles and can resemble an anvil. —Danielle Wallace, FOXNews.com, 3 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for anvil

Word History

Etymology

Middle English anfeld, anefelt, anvelt, anvyll, going back to Old English anfealt and anefilt, anelfilte, going back to Germanic *ana-falta- and *ana-feltja- (whence also, from the first, Old High German anafalz "anvil" and from the second, Middle Dutch aenvilte, anevilte), from *ana- "on" and *-falta-, *-feltja-, nominal derivatives from *faltan-, taken to mean "to strike, beat" — more at felt entry 1

Note: The word anvil was originally a deverbal compound meaning in effect "the thing on which striking is done." Already in Old English the makeup of the compound would have been less than transparent, as a verb corresponding to the deverbal second element -fealt/-filt(e) does not appear to have existed (or at least is not attested). Such a verb does exist in Old High German, though only in extended and/or specialized senses (see the note at felt entry 1). Parallel to *ana-falta-/*ana-feltja- were other Germanic compounds meaning "anvil": *ana-bauta- (whence Middle Low German anebōt, ambōt, Old High German anabōz, present-day German Amboß), from *bautan- "to strike, beat" (see beat entry 1); and *ana-baltja- (whence Middle Low German ānebelte, Middle Dutch aenbelt, Dutch aanbeeld, Old High German anabelzi) and *ana-bulta- (whence Middle Low German ānebolt, ambolt, Old High German anabolz), from the verbal base behind Old English bolt "bolt, arrow," Old High German bolz "bolt, hot iron" (see bolt entry 1). It has been suggested that all the Germanic compounds are calques on Latin incūd-. incūs "anvil," formed from in- in- entry 2 + cūdere "to beat, strike, hammer." Alternatively, the formation of such nouns may have been a European areal feature; compare Russian nakovál'nja "anvil," from na- "on" and a derivative of the verb kovát' "to hammer, forge," Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian nâkōvanj.

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of anvil was before the 12th century

Browse Nearby Words

anusvara
anvil
anvil bat
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Cite this Entry

“Anvil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/anvil. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.

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Kids Definition

anvil

noun
an·​vil ˈan-vəl How to pronounce anvil (audio)
1
: a heavy iron block on which metal is shaped (as by hammering)
2
: the middle bone of the chain of three small bones in the ear of a mammal

called also incus

Medical Definition

anvil

noun
an·​vil ˈan-vəl How to pronounce anvil (audio)
: incus

More from Merriam-Webster on anvil

Nglish: Translation of anvil for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about anvil

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