hurl

verb

ˈhər(-ə)l 

hurled; hurling ˈhər-liŋ 

intransitive verb

1

: rush, hurtle

2

: pitch sense 5a

3

: vomit

transitive verb

1

: to send or thrust with great vigor

the forces that were to be hurled against the Turks

—N. T. Gilroy

2

: to throw down with violence

3

a

: to throw forcefully : fling

hurled the manuscript into the fire

hurled myself over the fence

b

: pitch sense 2a

4

: to utter with vehemence

hurled insults at the police

hurl noun

hurler

ˈhər-lər 

noun

Synonyms

• barf
• gag
• heave
• puke
• retch
• spew
• spit up
• throw up
• upchuck
• vomit

Choose the Right Synonym for hurl

throw, cast, toss, fling, hurl, pitch, sling mean to cause to move swiftly through space by a propulsive movement or a propelling force.

throw is general and interchangeable with the other terms but may specifically imply a distinctive motion with bent arm.

can throw a fastball and a curve

cast usually implies lightness in the thing thrown and sometimes a scattering.

cast it to the winds

toss suggests a light or careless or aimless throwing and may imply an upward motion.

tossed the coat on the bed

fling stresses a violent throwing.

flung the ring back in his face

hurl implies power as in throwing a massive weight.

hurled himself at the intruder

pitch suggests throwing carefully at a target.

pitch horseshoes

sling stresses either the use of whirling momentum in throwing or directness of aim.

slung the bag over his shoulder

Examples of hurl in a Sentence

Someone hurled a rock through the window.

He hurled a chair at me.

It looked like she was going to hurl herself down the stairs.

The protesters hurled insults at us.

Recent Examples on the Web

These types of solar storms occur when eruptions from the sun, known as coronal mass ejections, hurl giant clouds of plasma into space. —Denise Chow, NBC News, 10 Oct. 2024

Well into the 20th century, communities were still pulling newspaper presses out of local rivers, hurled there by angry mobs. —Jon Grinspan, The Conversation, 7 Oct. 2024

All this has hurled the 19 San Jose State volleyball players into the maelstrom, positioning them between friendship, teamwork and their own senses of fairness as drama swirls around them. —Julia Prodis Sulek, The Mercury News, 6 Oct. 2024

The former once again found Minaj hurling jabs at Lil Kim, and its colorful music video broke the Vevo record at time with 4.8 million views in its first 24 hours of release. —Kyle Denis, Billboard, 1 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Phrases Containing hurl

• throw/hurl/toss a monkey wrench into

Kids Definition

hurl

verb

ˈhər(-ə)l 

hurled; hurling ˈhər-liŋ 

1

: to throw violently or powerfully

2

: pitch entry 3 sense 6a

3

: vomit entry 2

hurler

ˈhər-lər 

noun