adj, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
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"He dressed himself in some old ragged clothes, and took a tame white bear, which he had, with him, as well as an awl, some pitch, and twine."
"And if the servant shall say: I love my master and my wife and children, I will not go out free: His master shall bring him to the gods, and he shall be set to the door and the posts, and he shall bore his ear through with an awl: and he shall be his servant for ever."
A pointed instrument for piercing small holes, as in leather or wood; used by shoemakers, saddlers, cabinetmakers, etc. The blade is differently shaped and pointed for different uses, as in the brad awl, saddler's awl, shoemaker's awl, etc.
Common synonyms include: antler awl, bone awl, bradawl, buffer, instrument, lathe.
And if the servant shall say: I love my master and my wife and children, I will not go out free: His master shall bring him to the gods, and he shall be set to the door and the posts, and he shall bore his ear through with an awl: and he shall be his servant for ever.
Pronounced /ɔːl/.
From Middle English aul, alle, al, from Old English æl, from Proto-West Germanic *al, from Proto-Germanic *alaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ólos. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Äil (“awl”), Dutch aal (“awl”), German Low German Ahl (“awl”), German Ahle (“awl”), Icelandic alur (“awl”). Spelling was influenced by the Old English synonym awel, awul (“awl”), from Proto-West Germanic *ahwal, from Proto-Germanic *ahwalaz (“fork, hook”), of unknown origin. Doublet of elsen.