pro·jec·tile
prə-ˈjek-tᵊl 
-ˌtī(-ə)l
-ˌtī(-ə)l
chiefly British ˈprä-jik-ˌtī(-ə)l
1
: a body projected by external force and continuing in motion by its own inertia
especially
: a missile for a weapon (such as a firearm)
2
: a self-propelling weapon (such as a rocket)
1
: projecting or impelling forward
a projectile force
2
: capable of being thrust forward
Examples of projectile in a Sentence
Noun
The cannon fires a ten-pound projectile.
Someone threw a projectile at her car.
Recent Examples on the Web
Christopher Cann, USA TODAY, 26 Nov. 2024
Image Hezbollah fired about 250 projectiles into Israel Waves of air-raid sirens blared throughout much of Israel yesterday, including neighborhoods in the Tel Aviv area, after the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired about 250 projectiles into the country, the Israeli military said.
—Natasha Frost, New York Times, 25 Nov. 2024
Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 24 July 2024
This, together with competition from H. sapiens, who likely possessed technologies like projectile weapons, likely contributed to these other human species going extinct.
—Conor Feehly, Discover Magazine, 11 Oct. 2023
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Noun
When shooting a single lead projectile, gun powder would have been poured into muzzle followed by the round ball and a wad of paper or grass to keep the ball from rolling out when the muzzle was lowered, researchers said.
—Christopher Cann, USA TODAY, 26 Nov. 2024
Image Hezbollah fired about 250 projectiles into Israel Waves of air-raid sirens blared throughout much of Israel yesterday, including neighborhoods in the Tel Aviv area, after the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired about 250 projectiles into the country, the Israeli military said.
—Natasha Frost, New York Times, 25 Nov. 2024
Adjective
Police badly wounded people with projectile weapons at the George Floyd protests and the Lakers’ NBA title celebration in L.A., spurring a mountain of lawsuits — which have cost taxpayers millions and still aren’t fully resolved.
—Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 24 July 2024
This, together with competition from H. sapiens, who likely possessed technologies like projectile weapons, likely contributed to these other human species going extinct.
—Conor Feehly, Discover Magazine, 11 Oct. 2023
See all Example Sentences for projectile
Dictionary Entries Near projectile
Cite this Entry
“Projectile.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/projectile. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.
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