Illustration of catapult
- catapult 1
cat·a·pult
ˈka-tə-ˌpəlt 
-ˌpu̇lt
1
: an ancient military device for hurling missiles
2
: a device for launching an airplane at flying speed (as from an aircraft carrier)
catapulted; catapulting; catapults
: to throw or launch by or as if by a catapult
: to become catapulted
he catapulted to fame
Examples of catapult in a Sentence
Verb
They catapulted rocks toward the castle.
The publicity catapulted her CD to the top of the charts.
The novel catapulted him from unknown to best-selling author.
He catapulted to fame after his first book was published.
Her career was catapulting ahead.
Recent Examples on the Web
Ian Stokes, Space.com, 5 Apr. 2026
An alpine resort town famous as the birthplace of commercial bungee jumping, and as a springboard for other madcap thrills like heli-skiing and the world’s most extreme human catapult, is offering something relatively radical — relaxation.
—New York Times, 2 Apr. 2026
Shirley Halperin, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2026
Sam Levinson’s sex- and drug-laden series, which premiered in 2019, catapulted Zendaya to two Emmy wins and her current A-list standing as well as elevating the profiles of Sydney Sweeney, Hunter Schafer, Jacob Elordi and Colman Domingo.
—Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for catapult
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Noun
Between the catapults, slides and cranes, there are plenty of opportunities for the kind of crash-and-bang fun that young kids love.
—Ian Stokes, Space.com, 5 Apr. 2026
An alpine resort town famous as the birthplace of commercial bungee jumping, and as a springboard for other madcap thrills like heli-skiing and the world’s most extreme human catapult, is offering something relatively radical — relaxation.
—New York Times, 2 Apr. 2026
Verb
And though some of Euphoria’s ensemble players — Zendaya, Jacob Elordi, Sydney Sweeney — saw their acting careers catapult to new heights, others simply didn’t make it.
—Shirley Halperin, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2026
Sam Levinson’s sex- and drug-laden series, which premiered in 2019, catapulted Zendaya to two Emmy wins and her current A-list standing as well as elevating the profiles of Sydney Sweeney, Hunter Schafer, Jacob Elordi and Colman Domingo.
—Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for catapult
Cite this Entry
“Catapult.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/catapult. Accessed 16 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
catapult
1 of 2 noun
cat·a·pult
ˈkat-ə-ˌpəlt
-ˌpu̇lt
1
: an ancient military device for hurling missiles
2
: a device for launching an airplane (as from the deck of an aircraft carrier)
catapult
2 of 2 verb1
: to throw or launch by or as if by a catapult
2
: to become catapulted
he catapulted to fame
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