as in to throw
to send through the air especially with a quick forward motion of the arm
catapulted a pumpkin into the next yard
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Recent Examples of catapult
For a few years now, there’s been at least one young Western Conference team that catapults up the standings from the lottery more dramatically than anyone predicts.
—
Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 19 May 2026
Mahan entered the race late and with little statewide name recognition, but catapulted into contention thanks to massive funding from billionaire tech titans, venture capitalists, cryptocurrency investors and other Silicon Valley elites.
—Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 18 May 2026
Gregory Lorenzi has spent the past 10 years at Brest, where his eye for a bargain helped to catapult the humble Breton club from mid-table mediocrity in Ligue 2 to a third-place finish in Ligue 1 and a fairytale Champions League campaign.
—Tom Williams, New York Times, 17 May 2026
The tension required to catapult all reality TV viewers from episode to episode moves to a different tempo.
—Sarah Wang, PEOPLE, 16 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for catapult
Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 19 May 2026
Mahan entered the race late and with little statewide name recognition, but catapulted into contention thanks to massive funding from billionaire tech titans, venture capitalists, cryptocurrency investors and other Silicon Valley elites.
—Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 18 May 2026
Gregory Lorenzi has spent the past 10 years at Brest, where his eye for a bargain helped to catapult the humble Breton club from mid-table mediocrity in Ligue 2 to a third-place finish in Ligue 1 and a fairytale Champions League campaign.
—Tom Williams, New York Times, 17 May 2026
The tension required to catapult all reality TV viewers from episode to episode moves to a different tempo.
—Sarah Wang, PEOPLE, 16 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for catapult
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catapult
Verb
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Ha-Seong Kim lined a two-strike fastball off Chapman’s leg that Chapman eventually found along the first-base line before throwing to first for the final out.—
Chad Bishop,
AJC.com,
17 May 2026
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For one thing, that extra speed—plus a spike in spin, which has allowed pitchers to throw harder while also making the ball swerve, dive, and kick—has given pitchers an even greater advantage over batters than before.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
Verb
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Congregants speculated the egg was hurled by a resident of a new building across the street.—
Julian Roberts-Grmela,
New York Daily News,
22 May 2026
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No one embodies this anarchic sensibility like David Letterman, the original Late Show host, who recently joined Colbert to hurl CBS property off the studio’s roof, in a reprisal of a vintage bit.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
22 May 2026
Verb
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The victim described, matter-of-factly, how her trafficker had cut up jalapeños and tossed them into a toilet before banging her head against the inside of the bowl and dunking it into the water.—
Yudhijit Bhattacharjee,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
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And while tossing and turning is common, some disturbances are more unsettling.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
17 May 2026
Verb
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All that’s left is a frantic kickout to Embiid, which flings wide left.—
Fred Katz,
New York Times,
15 May 2026
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While fine particulate matter is made of charred bits flung directly into the atmosphere by wildfires, ozone forms after the fact, when nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds interact with light.—
Joanna Thompson,
Space.com,
12 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Catapult.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catapult. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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