projectile
/prə(ʊ)ˈdʒɛktʌɪl
/ /prə(ʊ)ˈdʒɛktɪl/noun
1A missile designed to be fired from a gun: the guns were deployed to flail the village with their one-ton projectiles...
- Ammunition stocks disappeared as artillery fired projectiles far in excess of prewar projections.
- They were in reality projectiles ultimately fired by the US navy.
- From the 300 projectiles which NATO has fired so far, only four have hit something of substance.
Synonyms
missile
rare trajectile
1.1An object propelled through the air, especially one thrown as a weapon: they tried to shield Johnson from the projectiles that were being thrown...
- The shield deflected small projectiles and energy weapons, but not that well.
- Worsham is excited about the adventure, though curiously a bit timid about the prospect of standing in the box to face thrown projectiles.
- I can also hold your projectiles and throw them back at you!
adjective
1Denoting or relating to a projectile: a projectile weapon...
- With advances in technology, the emphasis has shifted from the former to the latter with steady increases in the range of missile and projectile weapons.
- The nature of small systems is such that they are more difficult to hit with conventional projectile weapons due to their small size and large numbers.
- There were men all over the place, carrying every kind of rocket launcher, grenade launcher, bazooka, or projectile weapon they had.
1.1Propelled with great force: Simon was projectile vomiting...
- After they refused to serve her any more alcohol, they took her in for testing, where she proceeded to projectile vomit all over the room.
- How does someone manage to projectile vomit all over the footpath out front of McDonalds anyway?
- A little tip for the wise if you're ever in a similar situation: it's pretty much impossible to projectile vomit into a 20 ounce soda bottle cleanly.
Origin
Mid 17th century: modern Latin, from project- 'thrown forth', from the verb proicere (see project).