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Definition of Catapult
1. Noun. A plaything consisting of a Y-shaped stick with elastic between the arms; used to propel small stones.
2. Verb. Shoot forth or launch, as if from a catapult. "The enemy catapulted rocks towards the fort"
3. Noun. A device that launches aircraft from a warship.
4. Verb. Hurl as if with a sling. "They catapult the object in the water"
5. Noun. An engine that provided medieval artillery used during sieges; a heavy war engine for hurling large stones and other missiles.
Generic synonyms: Engine
Derivative terms: Catapultian, Catapultic
Definition of Catapult
1. n. An engine somewhat resembling a massive crossbow, used by the ancient Greeks and Romans for throwing stones, arrows, spears, etc.
Definition of Catapult
1. Noun. A device or weapon for throwing or launching large objects, such as a mechanical aid on aircraft carriers designed to help airplanes take off from the flight deck. ¹
2. Noun. (U.K.) slingshot ¹
3. Noun. An instance of firing a missile from a catapult. ¹
4. Noun. (figuratively) An instance of firing something, as if from a catapult. ¹
5. Verb. (transitive) To fire a missile from a catapult. ¹
6. Verb. (transitive) To fire or launch something, as if from a catapult. ¹
7. Verb. (transitive) To increase the status of something rapidly. ¹
8. Verb. (intransitive) To be fired from a catapult or as if from a catapult. ¹
9. Verb. (intransitive) To have one's status increased rapidly. ¹
¹ Source: wiktionary.com
Definition of Catapult
1. to hurl through the air [v -ED, -ING, -S]
Lexicographical Neighbors of Catapult
Literary usage of Catapult
Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:
1. A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities by William Smith (1891)
"At 1000 feet an arrow from a three-span catapult would be driven 2 inches into a
... The price of a two-ell catapult they estimate at about 480 drachmas, ..."
2. The Encyclopaedia of Sport by Frederick George Aflalo, Hedley Peek (1897)
"catapult SHOOTING —Ever since the Romans used it as their great engine of war,
a series of weapons of greater accuracy and greater shock have gradually ..."
3. Aerodynamics: Constituting the First Volume of a Complete Work on Aerial Flight by Frederick William Lanchester (1908)
"... on the runners of the catapult during launching. § 12. The Author's
Experiments (continued). The catapult.—The catapult employed for launching the ..."
4. A Military Dictionary and Gazetteer: Comprising Ancient and Modern Military by Thomas Wilhelm (1881)
"catapult (Lat. catapulta). An engine of war used by the ancients, ... In the
catapult a string or rope, suddenly freed from great tension, gave a powerful ..."
5. A Dictionary of the Architecture and Archaeology of the Middle Ages by John BRITTON (1838)
"... Lat., or catapult, in military antiquity, an engine used for throwing arrows,
stones, and other missiles, against castles and its besieged occupants. ..."
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