Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web

missile

- 5 dictionary results

mis⋅sile

[mis-uhl or, especially Brit., -ahyl]
–noun
1. an object or weapon for throwing, hurling, or shooting, as a stone, bullet, or arrow.
2. guided missile.
3. ballistic missile.
–adjective
4. capable of being thrown, hurled, or shot, as from the hand or a gun.
5. used or designed for discharging missiles.

Origin:
1600–10; < L, neut. of missilis, equiv. to miss(us) (ptp. of mittere to send, throw) + -ilis -ile
mis·sile   (mĭs'əl, -īl')   
n.  
  1. An object or weapon that is fired, thrown, dropped, or otherwise projected at a target; a projectile.
  2. A guided missile.
  3. A ballistic missile.

[Latin, from neuter of missilis, able to be thrown, from missus, past participle of mittere, to let go, throw.]

Missile

Mis"sile\, a. [L. missils, fr. mittere, missum, to cause to go, to send, to throw; cf. Lith. mesti to throw: cf. F. missile. Cf. Admit, Dismiss, Mass the religious service, Message, Mission.] Capable of being thrown; adapted for hurling or to be projected from the hand, or from any instrument or rngine, so as to strike an object at a distance.

We bend the bow, or wing the missile dart. --Pope.

Missile

Mis"sile\, n. [L. missile.] A weapon thrown or projected or intended to be projcted, as a lance, an arrow, or a bullet.
Language Translation for : missile
Spanish: proyectil,
German: das Geschoß,
Japanese: 飛び道具

missile 
1611 (adj.) "capable of being thrown," chiefly in phrase missile weapon, from Fr. missile, from L. missile "weapon that can be thrown," from missus, pp. of mittere "to send." The noun meaning "thing thrown or discharged as a weapon" is from 1656. Sense of "self-propelled rocket or bomb" is first recorded 1738; the modern remote guidance projectile so called from 1945.
Search another word or see missile on Thesaurus | Reference
>