Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A very heavy metal bar used by firefighters and law enforcement officers to break down walls and doors.
  • noun A heavy beam used in ancient and medieval warfare to batter down the walls and gates of a place under siege.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun historical A heavy object used for battering down walls and gates before gunpowder was known.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

The heads of some battering rams were carved in the shape of a ram, an animal renowned for butting with its head.

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