Etymologically
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catapult

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈkæ.tə.pʌlt/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French catapulte and Latin catapulta (“war machine for throwing”),[2][3][4][5] from Ancient Greek καταπέλτης (katapéltēs),[2][3][4][6] an alteration of earlier katapáltēs,[3][5] from kata- “against” and pállein “to hurl”.[2][3][4][5][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

An ancient military engine for hurling darts, stones or other missiles (1577).[7][3][5]

Semantic evolution

The Century Dictionary, quoted by Etymonline, notes that the exact construction of the ancient catapult is unknown and that later writers confused it with the ballista.[4] In British use the word was applied to a forked stick with an elastic band, the slingshot (1871),[7][6] and from 1927 to a device for launching aircraft.[7][4] The verb is from 1848,[3][4][5] and the intransitive sense of springing forward as if hurled is from 1928.[4][7]

Timeline

  • 1577 – an ancient engine for hurling missiles.[7][3][5]
  • 1848 – verb, to throw with a catapult.[3][4][5]
  • 1871 – a slingshot.[7]
  • 1927 – a device for launching aircraft.[7][4]
  • 1928 – intransitive, to spring as if hurled.[4][7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. An ancient or medieval military machine for hurling stones, spears and other missiles.
  2. A device for launching aircraft, as from the deck of an aircraft carrier.
  3. (British) A slingshot.

Verb

  1. To hurl or launch from or as if from a catapult.
  2. To move or spring forward suddenly, as to fame.

Word family

  • catapultic

Usage notes

Random House gives throw, fling, propel, pitch and shoot as synonyms of the verb.[6]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press