hurtle

[hur-tl]

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verb (used without object), hur·tled, hur·tling.

to rush violently; move with great speed: The car hurtled down the highway.
to move or go noisily or resoundingly, as with violent or rapid motion: The sound was deafening, as tons of snow hurtled down the mountain.
Archaic. to strike together or against something; collide.

verb (used with object), hur·tled, hur·tling.

to drive violently; fling; dash.
Archaic. to dash against; collide with.

noun

Archaic. clash; collision; shock; clatter.

Origin of hurtle

1175–1225; Middle English hurtle, equivalent to hurt(en) (see hurt) + -le -le

Can be confusedhurdle hurl hurtle

Synonyms for hurtle

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1. speed, fly, race, rush, shoot.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for hurtle

lunge, scoot, collide, shoot, fly, rush, bump, tear, race, push, spurt, speed, scramble

Examples from the Web for hurtle

Contemporary Examples of hurtle

Over the edge, you hurtle forward at a speed the human body was never meant to travel at.
Skiing is Love at First Swoosh
David Frum
March 16, 2013
As we hurtle together to the fiscal cliff, the Republicans are getting much the worse of the media battle.
Democrats Have Their Own Fiscal Delusions
David Frum
December 31, 2012
Ice masses, especially ones the size of Canadian provinces, do not technically “hurtle.”
Oops, My Mistake
Christopher Buckley
December 17, 2009

Historical Examples of hurtle

Stones and boulders began to hurtle from the mouth of the tunnel.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, October, 1930
Various
Books began to hurtle through the air and to fall upon the table.
The Tyranny of the Dark
Hamlin Garland
I looked out of the window to see and the car started to hurtle to the ground.
Tillie
Roger Phillips Graham
"Mrs. Hurtle is out for the day," said the girl who opened the door.
The Way We Live Now
Anthony Trollope
I am told also that Mr. Hurtle has been seen alive quite lately.
The Way We Live Now
Anthony Trollope

British Dictionary definitions for hurtle

hurtle

verb

to project or be projected very quickly, noisily, or violently
(intr) rare to collide or crash

Word Origin for hurtle

C13 hurtlen, from hurten to strike; see hurt 1

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

Word Origin and History for hurtle

early 14c., hurteln, "to crash together; to crash down, knock down," probably frequentative of hurten (see hurt (v.)) in its original sense. Intransitive meaning "to rush, dash, charge" is late 14c. The essential notion in hurtle is that of forcible collision, in hurl that of forcible projection. Related: Hurtled; hurtling.