catapult

American  

[kat-uh-puhlt, -poolt] / ˈkæt əˌpʌlt, -ˌpʊlt /

noun

• catapults
  plural

1. an ancient military engine for hurling stones, arrows, etc.

2. a device for launching an airplane from the deck of a ship.

3. British. a slingshot.

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verb (used with object)

• catapults,
  present (3rd person singular)
• catapulted,
  past participle,  past
• catapulting
  present participle

1. to hurl from a catapult.

2. to thrust or move quickly or suddenly.

   His brilliant performance in the play catapulted him to stardom.

   Synonyms:

   shoot, pitch, propel, fling, throw

3. British.

   1. to hurl (a missile) from a slingshot.

   2. to hit (an object) with a missile from a slingshot.

verb (used without object)

• catapults,
  present (3rd person singular)
• catapulted,
  past participle,  past
• catapulting
  present participle

1. to be catapulted.

2. to move or spring up suddenly, quickly, or forcibly, as if by means of a catapult.

   The car catapulted down the highway. When he heard the alarm he catapulted out of bed.

catapult British  

/ ˈkætəˌpʌlt /

noun

1. US and Canadian name: slingshot.  a Y-shaped implement with a loop of elastic fastened to the ends of the two prongs, used mainly by children for shooting small stones, etc

2. a heavy war engine used formerly for hurling stones, etc

3. a device installed in warships to launch aircraft

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verb

1. (tr) to shoot forth from or as if from a catapult

2. to move precipitately

   she was catapulted to stardom overnight

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• catapultic
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• catapults
  plural

Participles

• catapulting
  present
• catapulted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• catapult
  simple
• catapults
  simple
• have catapulted
  perfect
• has catapulted
  perfect
• am catapulting
  progressive
• are catapulting
  progressive
• is catapulting
  progressive
• have been catapulting
  perfect progressive
• has been catapulting
  perfect progressive

Past

• catapulted
  simple
• had catapulted
  perfect
• was catapulting
  progressive
• were catapulting
  progressive
• had been catapulting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will catapult
  simple
• will have catapulted
  perfect
• will be catapulting
  progressive
• will have been catapulting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of catapult

1570–80; < Latin catapulta < Greek katapéltēs, equivalent to kata- cata- + péltēs hurler, akin to pállein to hurl

Explanation

A catapult is something that hurls things through the air, like a catapult that sends pumpkins flying in an annual Halloween competition. To pronounce catapult, accent the first syllable: "CAT a pult." Catapult can also be a verb that means "to hurl or shoot forward." It's not only objects that catapult. A hit single can catapult a band to great fame, for example, or a high score may catapult you into first place. Just don't catapult any cats. That would catapult you to notoriety, and probably also to jail.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

catapult catapults catapulted catapulting

Others, like “Obsession,” catapult from modest beginnings into an echelon of popularity that not even the academics and historians could’ve foreseen.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026

He was behind the effortless app design that made Robinhood irresistible to scores of rookie investors and helped catapult it into the S&P 500 last year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026

Musk plans to create a “self-growing city” on the moon and catapult satellites into orbit from the lunar surface.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 31, 2026

Murphy, who delighted fans with a walkabout in Centenary Square on his arrival at Symphony Hall, paid tribute to the viewers who helped catapult Peaky Blinders into a worldwide hit.

From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2026

He’d spent the last forty-eight hours replaying the scene with Octavian at the catapult, wondering if he’d done wrong thing.

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan

China is using electromagnetic catapults in its newest aircraft carriers and France plans to use the system on the Ford in its new carrier.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

As of March, nearly 37,000 aircraft had been launched by Ford’s four electromagnetic catapults, according to Navy data.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

"The ballista spider's snare is bioengineered to store elastic energy in the silk and rapidly release it, giving it incredible instantaneous power density -- greater than any other specialized silk-based biological catapults," said Professor Narendra.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 26, 2026

"It's high-risk and high-reward. If it succeeds, of course, it catapults Pakistan to the top of the global diplomatic game."

From BBC ● Mar. 30, 2026

Behind their ditches, they were building catapults, scorpions, tall trebuchets.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

Their effectiveness at spurring weight loss catapulted their popularity.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

Its success has catapulted 26-year-old Barker from a YouTube video creator into Hollywood's A-league with a first feature-length film that cost just $750,000 to $1 million to make.

From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026

Four years after being catapulted into global stardom, the pair are bidding a bittersweet farewell to the roles that have defined their own coming of age.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

"This shirt is not only a lasting reminder of one of the most important moments in football history, but is principally connected to the very moment that catapulted Pele into a global sporting icon."

From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026

She’d been the best Glitcher to ever grace the steps of the Academy, a fact that had quickly catapulted her up the ranks until she was named the first female commander in chief.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

Meta Platforms is reportedly exploring a new avenue of artificial-intelligence monetization, raising questions about whether Meta is throwing in the towel on being a leading AI lab or, rather, catapulting its business ahead.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026

The paintings were a massive hit, catapulting Julian to a new echelon of fame, but isolating Christopher and ultimately driving him away, leaving the third and final series incomplete.

From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2026

Many had said the fad would soon fade, casting doubt on the logic of Pop Mart’s share price catapulting above that of heavyweights like Alibaba.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 25, 2026

By this summer, the number of claims jumped from roughly 2,100 to 3,700, according to court records, catapulting Slater far beyond the caseload of any other firm.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 22, 2025

Up ahead of them Bod saw a statue swing up, and another two creatures came catapulting out into this crimson-skied world, just like the ones that carried Bod.

From "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman

Related Words

• slingshot