slingshot
noun
sling·shot
ˈsliŋ-ˌshät 
1
: a forked stick with an elastic band attached for shooting small stones
2
a
: a maneuver in auto racing in which a drafting car accelerates past the car in front by taking advantage of reserve power
b
: a dragster in which the driver sits behind the rear wheels
Examples of slingshot in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The crew — including NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen — has been back on Earth for one week after a history-making, slingshot trip around the moon.
—
Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 16 Apr. 2026
Its lunar flyby was on April 6 and the Orion capsule began using the moon's gravity as a slingshot on its trajectory back toward Earth.
—Stephen J. Beard, USA Today, 9 Apr. 2026
The mission so far Artemis II is more than halfway through its slingshot mission around the moon and back.
—Brendan Byrne, NPR, 6 Apr. 2026
The 30-minute firing of the Orion service module engine will place the spacecraft on a free-return trajectory — a course that loops around the far side of the moon and slingshots back toward Earth.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for slingshot
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Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 16 Apr. 2026
Its lunar flyby was on April 6 and the Orion capsule began using the moon's gravity as a slingshot on its trajectory back toward Earth.
—Stephen J. Beard, USA Today, 9 Apr. 2026
The mission so far Artemis II is more than halfway through its slingshot mission around the moon and back.
—Brendan Byrne, NPR, 6 Apr. 2026
The 30-minute firing of the Orion service module engine will place the spacecraft on a free-return trajectory — a course that loops around the far side of the moon and slingshots back toward Earth.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for slingshot
Cite this Entry
“Slingshot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slingshot. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
slingshot
noun
sling·shot
ˈsliŋ-ˌshät
: a forked stick with an elastic band attached for shooting small stones
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