Illustration of catapult
- catapult 1
cat·a·pult
ˈka-tə-ˌpəlt 
-ˌpu̇lt
1
: an ancient military device for hurling missiles
2
: a device for launching an airplane at flying speed (as from an aircraft carrier)
catapulted; catapulting; catapults
: to throw or launch by or as if by a catapult
: to become catapulted
he catapulted to fame
Examples of catapult in a Sentence
Verb
They catapulted rocks toward the castle.
The publicity catapulted her CD to the top of the charts.
The novel catapulted him from unknown to best-selling author.
He catapulted to fame after his first book was published.
Her career was catapulting ahead.
Recent Examples on the Web
Bypaolo Confino, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2024
The day her class spent on campus commemorating the International Day of Women and Girls in Science by building catapults out of plastic spoons was supposed to encourage the students to break the trend.
—Sarah Blaskey, Miami Herald, 26 Jan. 2025
Matt Robison, Newsweek, 25 Feb. 2025
Industry sources say the ease and appeal of a capsule format could catapult the product to near $1 million in first-year retail sales.
—Emily Burns, WWD, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for catapult
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Noun
The recent catapult comes after the stock tumbled to an all-time low of $12.15 on Sept. 23.
—Bypaolo Confino, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2024
The day her class spent on campus commemorating the International Day of Women and Girls in Science by building catapults out of plastic spoons was supposed to encourage the students to break the trend.
—Sarah Blaskey, Miami Herald, 26 Jan. 2025
Verb
In fact, the 2025 Golden Globes host — who catapulted to a household name after her roast of Tom Brady on Netflix in May 2024 — told the podcast that respect played a huge role in her becoming such a die-hard Swiftie.
—Matt Robison, Newsweek, 25 Feb. 2025
Industry sources say the ease and appeal of a capsule format could catapult the product to near $1 million in first-year retail sales.
—Emily Burns, WWD, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for catapult
Cite this Entry
“Catapult.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/catapult. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
catapult
1 of 2 noun
cat·a·pult
ˈkat-ə-ˌpəlt
-ˌpu̇lt
1
: an ancient military device for hurling missiles
2
: a device for launching an airplane (as from the deck of an aircraft carrier)
catapult
2 of 2 verb1
: to throw or launch by or as if by a catapult
2
: to become catapulted
he catapulted to fame
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