kite
a light frame covered with some thin material, to be flown in the wind at the end of a long string.
any of several small birds of the hawk family Accipitridae that have long, pointed wings, feed on insects, carrion, reptiles, rodents, and birds, and are noted for their graceful, gliding flight.: Compare black kite, swallow-tailed kite, white-tailed kite.
Nautical. flying kite.
Finance.
a check drawn against uncollected or insufficient funds, as for redepositing, with the intention of creating a false balance in the account by taking advantage of the time lapse required for collection.
a check whose amount has been raised by forgery before cashing.
a person who preys on others; sharper.
Informal. to fly or move with a rapid or easy motion like that of a kite.
to obtain money or credit through kites.
to employ (a check or the like) as a kite; to cash or pass (a kite, forged check, etc.).
Origin of kite
1Other words from kite
- kiter, noun
- kitelike, adjective
Words Nearby kite
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use kite in a sentence
The plan was to utilize kites attached to their harnesses to help aid locomotion, effectively towing them across the frozen landscape.
The other interesting thing to know about this particular Thanksgiving is that I’m in love – dizzying, heart palpitating, feeling high as a kite love.
It was an odd-looking thing, essentially an oval kite, quite a bit longer than it was wide, and lacking—as birds did—a fin or rudder to keep it pointed in the right direction.
The science behind how an aircraft glides | By Peter Garrison/Flying Mag | September 3, 2020 | Popular-ScienceOn most Saturdays and Sundays, we usually head up into the mountains, go for a hike, fly a kite, splash around in a stream maybe.
Investors continue to push global stocks into record territory | Bernhard Warner | August 24, 2020 | FortuneA speeding racecar, a flying kite, a kid cruising along on rollerblades — they all have momentum.
Manned, unmanned, a balloon, a kite—you still have to get the information into the hands of the firefighters.
Fighting Wildfire With Satellites, Lasers, and Drones | Elizabeth Lopatto | July 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTMaybe not good enough to fly a kite with my face on it through Central Park, but better.
Marlo Thomas Says Girls Should Feel Free to Be Like Hannah Horvath | Emily Shire | April 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTHe was a fairly well-known actor already—the star of The kite Runner.
How Jehane Noujaim Made The Year’s Most Dangerous Documentary ‘The Square’ | Andrew Romano | February 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTFounded in 2006 by some entrepreneurial kite surfers, Makani makes flying wind turbines.
The author of The kite Runner picks his favorite short story collections.
It occurred to him then, for the first time, that a third resource was open—he might cut the rope, and let the kite go free!
The Giant of the North | R.M. BallantyneThese Eskimos were very fond of kite-flying, for its own sake, without reference to utility!
The Giant of the North | R.M. BallantyneThe third boat and kite had been damaged beyond repair, but the two left were sufficient.
The Giant of the North | R.M. BallantyneIt needed only an exertion of will for the soul to hurl the body ashore as wind drives paper; to waft it kite-fashion to the bank.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II | Rudyard KiplingBeing towed by Chets big kite had became a game that all hands wanted to try.
The Girls of Central High on the Stage | Gertrude W. Morrison
British Dictionary definitions for kite (1 of 2)
/ (kaɪt) /
a light frame covered with a thin material flown in the wind at the end of a length of string
British slang an aeroplane
(plural) nautical any of various light sails set in addition to the working sails of a vessel
any diurnal bird of prey of the genera Milvus, Elanus, etc, typically having a long forked tail and long broad wings and usually preying on small mammals and insects: family Accipitridae (hawks, etc)
archaic a person who preys on others
commerce a negotiable paper drawn without any actual transaction or assets and designed to obtain money on credit, give an impression of affluence, etc
fly a kite See fly 1 (def. 14)
high as a kite See high (def. 30)
to issue (fictitious papers) to obtain credit or money
(tr) US and Canadian to write (a cheque) in anticipation of sufficient funds to cover it
(intr) to soar and glide
Origin of kite
1Derived forms of kite
- kiter, noun
British Dictionary definitions for kite (2 of 2)
/ (kəɪt) /
a variant spelling of kyte
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with kite
see go fly a kite; high as a kite.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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