hurl

American  

[hurl] / hɜrl /

verb (used with object)

1. to throw or fling with great force or vigor.

   Synonyms:

   pitch, cast

2. to throw or cast down.

3. to utter with vehemence.

   to hurl insults at the umpire.

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verb (used without object)

1. to throw a missile.

2. Baseball. to pitch a ball.

noun

1. a forcible or violent throw; fling.

hurl British  

/ hɜːl /

verb

1. (tr) to throw or propel with great force

2. (tr) to utter with force; yell

   to hurl insults

3. to transport or be transported in a driven vehicle

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noun

1. the act or an instance of hurling

2. a ride in a driven vehicle

Other Word Forms

• hurler noun
• outhurl verb (used with object)
• unhurled adjective

Etymology

Origin of hurl

1175–1225; Middle English hurlen, equivalent to hur- (perhaps akin to hurry ) + -len -le; akin to Low German hurreln to toss, Frisian hurreln to roar (said of the wind), dialectal German hurlen to roll, rumble (said of thunder)

Example Sentences

Over and over again the group worked with me—Nils, Henk, Leendert—bursting into my room without warning, shaking me awake, hurling questions at me.

From Literature

At any moment it might hurl him into an ice hole...

From Literature

I hurled myself along the road, thinking about the bailiffs and Devlin, who collected the rents for Lord Cunningham.

From Literature

“I love good news. Unless it’s private and you don’t want to share. But I love a reason to celebrate. Or hurl phones into the street.”

From Literature

Some of it spilled out onto the deck, filling the air with the pungent odor of distant lands, before the barrels were hurled overboard into the water.

From Literature

Related Words

• fire
• fling
• heave
• lob
• sling