catapult

1 of 2

noun

cat·​a·​pult ˈka-tə-ˌpəlt How to pronounce catapult (audio)
-ˌpu̇lt
1
: an ancient military device for hurling missiles
2
: a device for launching an airplane at flying speed (as from an aircraft carrier)

Illustration of catapult

Illustration of catapult
  • catapult 1

catapult

2 of 2

verb

catapulted; catapulting; catapults

transitive verb

: to throw or launch by or as if by a catapult

intransitive verb

: 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
Noun
The action creates more of a catapult or whipping motion, taking pressure off the elbow. Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 17 Feb. 2024 The day her class spent on campus commemorating the International Day of Women and Girls in Science by building catapults out of plastic spoons was supposed to encourage the students to break the trend. Sarah Blaskey, Miami Herald, 13 Feb. 2024 Yet, TikTok can serve as a catapult to stardom if an artist remains consistent and continues to produce great music, Grant believes. Payton Kirol, Fortune, 21 Jan. 2024 The entire chaotic episode, caught on video by a bystander and shared on Reddit, shows Hayne hollering at Russell for at least a minute before launching her food like a human catapult. Li Goldstein, Bon Appétit, 8 Dec. 2023 Advertisement Lance Twitty, Daiso’s chief merchandising and supply chain officer, said the company’s presence in Texas and DeSoto would serve as a catapult to expand nationwide. Irving Mejia-Hilario, Dallas News, 1 July 2023 The defender’s career, however, did not quite catapult. Michael Gehlken, Dallas News, 26 July 2023 Or building catapults to launch lunar dust into orbit around Earth and intercept the sun’s rays in the space near our planet. Popular Science, 9 Aug. 2023 In simpler times, the best gifts for your brother were a homemade card and a catapult built from sticks outside. Gaby Keiderling, Harper's BAZAAR, 28 July 2023
Verb
Its ensuing nine-game winning streak catapulted the Razorbacks into multiple No. 1 rankings on Monday. Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 12 Mar. 2024 The song and video went viral, catapulting the Texas native into stardom before anybody really knew anything about him. Damien Scott, Billboard, 5 Mar. 2024 His campaign has been bolstered by third-party groups like Texans United for a Conservative Majority, backed by West Texas oil and gas money, and catapulted into the national spotlight by an endorsement from Mr. Trump, who called Mr. Covey out of the blue to offer it. J. David Goodman, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2024 This driving mission of access and scale combined with quality has catapulted it to a position as the world’s most exemplar university. Brandon Busteed, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 The 31-year-old chipmaker has catapulted to the technological forefront because of its head start in making the graphics processing units, or GPUs, required to fuel popular AI products such as ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini chatbot. Michael Liedtke, Fortune, 22 Feb. 2024 That event catapulted her into a career as an educator and activist. Tribune News Service, Orange County Register, 21 Feb. 2024 Welch, who was catapulted to international stardom in the ’60s thanks to her roles in One Million Years B.C., Fantastic Voyage and Bedazzled, died in February last year at age 82 following a brief illness. Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2024 Like many of her costars, Martha Plimpton's role as Stef with the cool earrings catapulted her into the Hollywood spotlight and she's had a steady career since, though The Goonies remains one of her most popular films. Sarah Weldon, EW.com, 5 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'catapult.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French or Latin; Middle French catapulte, from Latin catapulta, from Greek katapaltēs, from kata- + pallein to hurl

First Known Use

Noun

1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1848, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of catapult was in 1577

Dictionary Entries Near catapult

Cite this Entry

“Catapult.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/catapult. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

catapult

1 of 2 noun
cat·​a·​pult ˈkat-ə-ˌpəlt How to pronounce catapult (audio)
-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 verb
1
: to throw or launch by or as if by a catapult
2
: to become catapulted
he catapulted to fame

More from Merriam-Webster on catapult

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