Catapult definition |Dictionary.com

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Synonyms of Catapult

ballista, fling, heave, hurl, launch, onager, propel, slingshot, throw,

Catapult

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5 dictionary results for: Catapult

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

cat·a·pult

[kat-uh-puhlt, -poo

lt] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	an ancient military engine for hurling stones, arrows, etc.

2.	a device for launching an airplane from the deck of a ship.

3.	British. a slingshot.

–verb (used with object)

4.	to hurl from a catapult.

5.	to thrust or move quickly or suddenly: His brilliant performance in the play catapulted him to stardom.

British.

a.	to hurl (a missile) from a slingshot.

b.	to hit (an object) with a missile from a slingshot.

–verb (used without object)

7.	to be catapulted.

8.	to move or spring up suddenly, quickly, or forcibly, as if by means of a catapult: The car catapulted down the highway. When he heard the alarm he catapulted out of bed.

[Origin: 1570–80; < L catapulta < Gk katapéltés, equiv. to kata- cata- + péltés hurler, akin to pállein to hurl

]

—Related forms

cat·a·pul·tic, adjective

—Synonyms 5. throw, fling, propel, pitch, shoot.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

cat·a·pult (kāt'ə-pŭlt', -pŏŏlt') Pronunciation Key
n.

A military machine for hurling missiles, such as large stones or spears, used in ancient and medieval times.
A mechanism for launching aircraft at a speed sufficient for flight, as from the deck of a carrier.
A slingshot.

v.   cat·a·pult·ed, cat·a·pult·ing, cat·a·pults

v.   tr.
To hurl or launch from or as if from a catapult.

v.   intr.
To become catapulted; spring or bolt.

[French catapulte, from Old French, from Latin catapulta, from Greek katapaltēs : kata-, cata- + pallein, to brandish, poise a weapon before hurling; see pāl- in Indo-European roots.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
catapult

1577, from L. catapulta "war machine for throwing," from Gk. katapeltes, from kata "against" + base of pallein "to toss, hurl." The verb is first recorded 1848.

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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

catapult
noun
1.	a plaything consisting of a Y-shaped stick with elastic between the arms; used to propel small stones [syn: slingshot]
2.	a device that launches aircraft from a warship
3.	an engine that provided medieval artillery used during sieges; a heavy war engine for hurling large stones and other missiles
verb
1.	shoot forth or launch, as if from a catapult; "the enemy catapulted rocks towards the fort"
2.	hurl as if with a sling [syn: sling]