dart

1 of 2

noun

ˈdärt

Synonyms of dart next

archaic : a light spear

b(1)

: a small missile usually with a pointed shaft at one end and feathers at the other

(2)

darts plural in form but singular in construction : a game in which darts are thrown at a target

: something projected with sudden speed

especially : a sharp glance

: something causing sudden pain or distress

darts of sarcasm

: something with a slender pointed shaft or outline

specifically : a stitched tapering fold in a garment

: a quick movement

made a dart for the door

dart

2 of 2

verb

darted; darting; darts

transitive verb

: to throw with a sudden movement

: to thrust or move with sudden speed

: to shoot with a dart containing a usually tranquilizing drug

intransitive verb

: to move suddenly or rapidly

darted across the street

Example Sentences

Noun He was hit with a poisoned dart. Her favorite game is darts. a quick dart to the left Verb We saw a deer dart across the road. The frog darted its tongue at a fly.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Who Shagged Me, meanwhile, the henchman is a devout three-question form follower before being hit with a dart by Mini-Me (Verne Troyer) and falling off a cliff, breaking his legs. —

Terry Terrones, EW.com, 17 Jan. 2023 Finally, the Kraken pushed the lead to 2-0, Tolvanen connecting with a dart on a turnaround wrister from the slot with 22 seconds to go before the break. —

Kevin Paul Dupont, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Jan. 2023 Zoo responders shot 19-year-old Tufani with a sedation dart and returned her to her enclosure within an hour. —

Dallas News, 13 Jan. 2023 As the sun bathed the bomas in a golden hue, veterinarian Peter Rogers stood atop the platform and shot a tranquilizer dart into a black rhino. —

Sudarsan Raghavan, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2022 Then another two-handed, overhand dart to Tobey at the rim. —

Dallas News, 1 Sep. 2022 Who to sit: Both Devin Duvernay (BAL) and Demarcus Robinson (BAL) are dart throws despite a juicy matchup with a defense allowing the second-most fantasy points to wide receivers. —

San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Dec. 2022 The ability to juke a blitzing cornerback, sprint right and toss an on-the-move, sidearm dart? —

Eric Branch, San Francisco Chronicle, 6 Dec. 2022 New technologies, new vocabulary and new cultural trends dart in and out of life faster than at any time in history. —

Tom Roland, Billboard, 22 Nov. 2022

Verb

The welt, said Vargas’ source, was from an elephant gun — the kind used at zoos to dart big game. —

Paul Solotaroff, Rolling Stone, 8 Jan. 2023 There’s firepower across the floor, and with Blossom accurately setting the ball from everywhere on the floor, opposing blockers don’t know where to dart about the net. —

Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Dec. 2022 Ordinarily, puff adders dart their tongues in and out to sample the air. —

Elizabeth Preston, Discover Magazine, 7 Feb. 2017 Officials captured the lion, known as P-22, by tracking its GPS location and had biologists dart him, the release said. —

Taylor Romine, CNN, 13 Dec. 2022 Larvae of the most common species go on to penetrate the gills of a California killifish, then attach themselves by the hundreds to the fish’s brain, manipulating the new host to dart to the surface or roll on its side and flash its silvery belly. —

Kenneth R. Weiss, Discover Magazine, 20 Dec. 2018 One officer later testified Crawford tried to dart away; the other that Crawford was about to shoot them. —

Jake Zuckerman, cleveland, 25 Nov. 2022 As a teenager, Rodgers would dart from freestyling with his buddies on Philly street corners to his piano lessons, feeling like a part of two different worlds. —

Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2022 His eyes dart around the room — kettle, phone, dad, kettle, dad, phone, kettle. —

Gabriel Rom, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dart.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.