A tool with a pointed end and a flat blade, used for breaking up hard ground or rocks.
I dug the ground with a pickaxe at the construction site.
You need a pickaxe to break hard rocks.
The word is usually written in kana; this is the most common spelling.
Katakana spelling, often used in technical or emphatic contexts.
Kanji form; rarely used in modern writing.
From 鶴, “crane,” and 嘴, “beak,” named for the tool’s resemblance to a crane’s long pointed beak.