missile

[ mis-uh l or, esp. British, -ahyl ]

/ ˈmɪs əl or, esp. British, -aɪl /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR missile ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an object or weapon for throwing, hurling, or shooting, as a stone, bullet, or arrow.

guided missile.

ballistic missile.

adjective

capable of being thrown, hurled, or shot, as from the hand or a gun.

used or designed for discharging missiles.

Nearby words

Origin of missile

1600–10; < Latin, neuter of missilis, equivalent to miss(us) (past participle of mittere to send, throw) + -ilis -ile

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for missile

The reason pilots would choose to use guns over a bomb or a missile is simple.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We know that the skies are open season for all manner of drone traffic, from missile launchers to beer droppers.
Meet Our Animal Robot Overlords|James Joiner|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the later stages of the war, the American-made Stinger missile was introduced and wreaked havoc among the Soviet helicopters.
CIA Agents Assess: How Real Is ‘Homeland’?|Chuck Cogan, John MacGaffin|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Like boxers, every missile has a reach, a range, a limit to how far it can hit.
Pentagon Worries That Russia Can Now Outshoot U.S. Stealth Jets|Dave Majumdar|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST

The missile fell back to earth after just 40 seconds in the air.
Ashton Carter, the Wonk Who Would Lead the Pentagon|Shane Harris, Tim Mak|December 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Lily tossed the missile into the other girl's lap, for she was too eager to open her own two letters to cause any further delay.
The Girl Scouts' Good Turn|Edith Lavell
Moreover, the discharge of this missile is a far more complicated undertaking than is generally supposed.
The Victory At Sea|William Sowden Sims
One missile knocked from its tail a few long feathers, which drifted slowly down on the heads of the people.
Pawnee Hero Stories and Folk-Tales|George Bird Grinnell
This could have been produced by a missile entering in the ordinary fashion, undisturbed, undistorted.
Warren Commission (4 of 26): Hearings Vol. IV (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
Missile after missile shot accurately out at the attackers and retaliation was well nigh impossible.
A Son of the City|Herman Gastrell Seely

British Dictionary definitions for missile

missile

/ (ˈmɪsaɪl) /

noun

any object or weapon that is thrown at a target or shot from an engine, gun, etc

a rocket-propelled weapon that flies either in a fixed trajectory (ballistic missile) or in a trajectory that can be controlled during flight (guided missile)
(as modifier)a missile carrier

Word Origin for missile

C17: from Latin: missilis, from mittere to send

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 missile

missile

"thing thrown or discharged as a weapon," is 1650s, from missile (adj.), 1610s, "capable of being thrown," chiefly in phrase missile weapon, from French missile and directly from Latin missilis "that may be thrown or hurled" (also, in plural, as a noun, "weapons that can be thrown, darts, javelins"), from missus "a throwing, hurling," past participle of mittere "to send" (see mission). Sense of "self-propelled rocket or bomb" is first recorded 1738; the modern remote guidance projectile so called from 1945.

missile

noun

adjective

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Origin of missile

Examples from the Web for missile

British Dictionary definitions for missile

missile

noun

Word Origin for missile

Word Origin and History for missile

missile