bulldozer

/ˈbʊlˌdoʊzɚ/

Etymology

Originally bull-dozer (1875, Louisiana, US), in the bullier and terrorizer sense; bulldoze + -er. The name for the earthmoving machine came later, figuratively, from that sense.

noun

  1. A tractor with caterpillar tracks and an attached blade for pushing earth and building debris for coarse preliminary surface grading, demolishing building structures, etc.“The bulldozer is a caterpillar tractor on the front of which is mounted a heavy steel blade which can be moved up and down by hydraulic gear. By sheer brute force it can push down trees and hedges, remove obstructions (including light brickwork) and level and consolidate newly-tipped banks.”
  2. One who bulldozes.
  3. A member of a self-identified group of white US Southerners who colluded to influence outcomes of post-Reconstruction elections by intimidating, coercing and bullying black voters and legislators, including burning down houses and churches, flogging and murdering opponents.
  4. A bully; an overbearing individual.

verb

  1. To bulldoze (demolish with a bulldozer).
  2. To bulldoze (push through forcefully).“They bulldozered through the crowd.”