lance

1 of 2

noun

ˈlan(t)s 

1

: a steel-tipped spear carried by mounted knights or light cavalry

2

: any of various sharp objects suggestive of a lance: such as

a

: lancet

b

: a spear used for killing whales or fish

3

: lancer sense 1b

lance

2 of 2

verb

lanced; lancing

transitive verb

1

a

: to pierce with or as if with a lance

b

: to open with or as if with a lancet

lance a boil

2

: to throw forward : hurl

intransitive verb

: to move forward quickly

Synonyms

Noun

• javelin
• pike
• pikestaff
• shaft
• spear

Verb

• gore
• harpoon
• impale
• jab
• peck
• pick
• pierce
• pink
• puncture
• run through
• skewer
• spear
• spike
• spit
• stab
• stick
• transfix
• transpierce

Examples of lance in a Sentence

Noun

the lance struck squarely on the knight's shield, knocking him from his horse

Verb

He had the boil on his arm lanced.

doctors used to lance infected sores, so that they could drain clean

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Lance Leaf Blanket Flower The three-lobed ray petals of lance leaf blanket flower, Gaillardia aestivalis, give the flowers a unique appearance. —Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 11 July 2024

Avenging Cossacks waited to skewer enemy soldiers on their long lances; Russian peasants simply slaughtered them with scythes. —Antony Beevor, Foreign Affairs, 29 Dec. 2022

Verb

But an Israeli missile lanced through his house, killing the 23 people inside, including more than a dozen women and two children. —Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2024

For Shebaa, a postcard-perfect mountaintop village on Lebanon’s southeastern tip, the calamity came around 3 a.m. Friday, when Lebanese officials say two Israeli missiles lanced through the Zahra family‘s three-story building. —Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin lancea

Verb

Middle English launcen, from Anglo-French lancer, from Late Latin lanceare, from Latin lancea

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing lance

• fer-de-lance
• free lance
• lance corporal
• sand lance

Kids Definition

lance

1 of 2 noun

ˈlan(t)s 

1

: a weapon consisting of a long shaft with a sharp steel head that was used by knights on horseback

2

: a sharp instrument

especially : lancet

lance

2 of 2 verb

lanced; lancing

: to pierce or cut with a lance or lancet

Medical Definition

lance

1 of 2 noun

ˈlan(t)s 

: lancet

lance

2 of 2 transitive verb

lanced; lancing

: to open with or as if with a lancet : make an incision in or into

lance a boil

lance a vein