hammer away at
hammer away at (someone)
To intensely or vigorously interrogate someone. My parents wouldn't stop hammering away at me with questions as I was heading out the door—I thought I'd never be able to leave! Would you stop hammering away at me with questions? I don't know where he is!
hammer away at (something)
1. To strike something repeatedly The mechanic hammered away at the dent in my door. I hammered away at the beef with a meat tenderizer.
2. To work hard on something persistently over time. Yes, we're still hammering away at the details of this contract.
3. To talk about something at length, often to the listener's annoyance. Quit hammering away at that topic—no one wants to hear about it anymore.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
hammer away at
Keep at something continuously, as in The reporters hammered away at the candidate. This phrase employs hammer in the sense of "beat repeatedly," a usage dating from the mid-1600s.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.