The Collaborative International Dictionary
shoemaker's awl
Awl \Awl\ ([add]l), n. [OE. aul, awel, al, AS. [=ae]l, awel; akin to Icel. alr, OHG. [=a]la, G. ahle, Lith. yla, Skr. 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.
Usage examples of "shoemaker's awl".
Mallory watched in astonishment as shell after shell punched through the roof, the holes as neatly spaced as the stabs of a shoemaker's awl.