To persist in a line of questioning or declaration; attempt to persuade or break down by force: The prosecutor kept hammering away at the alibi/ He hammered away at my credibility(1887+)
Idioms and Phrases with hammer away at
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.