spear-thrower
[speer-throh-er]
- a flexible device for launching a spear, usually a short cord wound around the spear so that when thrown the weapon will rotate in the air.
- Also called atlatl. a rigid device for increasing the speed and distance of a spear when thrown, usually a flat wooden stick with a handhold and a peg or socket to accommodate the butt end of the spear.
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Origin of spear-thrower
First recorded in 1870–75
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for spear-thrower
Historical Examples
Are the spear-thrower and the bull-roarer inevitably thought of as alive?
AnthropologyRobert Marett
But it is quite otherwise with his spear-thrower or his bull-roarer.
AnthropologyRobert Marett
Spears and wooden clubs are universal, and the use of the spear-thrower is generally distributed.
Man, Past and PresentAgustus Henry Keane