haymakers

Noun

haymaker (plural haymakers)

1. A person or machine which harvests or prepares tall grass for use as animal fodder.
   • A long rank of haymakers—men and women—proceeded with their rakes, the white shirt-sleeves, straw bonnets, and ruddy faces, radiant in the bath of sunshine.1853, Charlotte M. Yonge, chapter 7, in The Heir of Redclyffe
2. (informal) A particularly powerful punch, especially one which knocks down an opponent, thrown like a scythe chop for cutting hay, as agricultural haymakers used to have strong arms.
   • The saga of Newt Gingrich's ethics suddenly resembles a brawl between blindfolded boxers who flail away so wildly that each lands a haymaker on his own jaw.1997 January 20, George Church, “Newt's Day of Deliverance”, in TIME, archived from the original on 22 Dec 2008
3. (broadly, figuratively) Any decisive blow, shock, or forceful action.
   • The real potential haymaker for the industry is a proposal, now gaining support in Congress, that would tax the profits private equity reaps on selling companies not at the low cap gains rate, but at the regular income tax rate.2007 June 18, Shawn Tully, “Private equity: End of the golden age?”, in CNN Money, archived from the original on 19 Sep 2007, retrieved 10 Sep 2008

See all 4 meanings of haymaker