Any of the swift, powerful sharks in the family Sphyrnidae, having a broad, flattened, hammer-or spade-shaped head, with the eyes and nostrils at the ends of the sidewise projections.
Widely distributed in all oceans, in warm and temperate waters, they feed on fish, stingrays, skates, and other sharks. Some species are fished for leather and oil. Three species seem to be particularly dangerous to humans: the great hammerhead (the largest hammerhead, growing to 15 ft, or 4.5 m, or more), the scalloped hammerhead, and the smooth hammerhead. All three are grayish and found throughout the tropics.