Missile Definition & Meaning

American

British

Etymology

Examples

Related Words

Synonyms missile American [mis-uhl, -ahyl] / ˈmɪs əl, -aɪl /

noun

1. an object or weapon for throwing, hurling, or shooting, as a stone, bullet, or arrow.

2. guided missile.

3. ballistic missile.

adjective

1. capable of being thrown, hurled, or shot, as from the hand or a gun.

2. used or designed for discharging missiles.

missile British / ˈmɪsaɪl /

noun

1. any object or weapon that is thrown at a target or shot from an engine, gun, etc

2. 1. a rocket-propelled weapon that flies either in a fixed trajectory (ballistic missile) or in a trajectory that can be controlled during flight (guided missile)

   2. ( as modifier )

      a missile carrier

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of missile

1600–10; < Latin, neuter of missilis, equivalent to miss ( us ) (past participle of mittere to send, throw) + -ilis -ile

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The contracts by the Space Development Agency will fund the construction by each company of 18 satellites for a network in development that will provide warning of advanced threats such as hypersonic missiles.

From Los Angeles Times

One early project could be fielding low-cost hypersonic missiles, she said.

From The Wall Street Journal

They have signed agreements related to space and missile defense technology transfers and increased cooperation between their respective BeiDou and Glonass satellite navigation systems.

From The Wall Street Journal

He was one of the few Western reporters to stay in Baghdad, according to AP, with one of his first broadcasts from the city being interrupted by the sounds of missiles and air-raid sirens.

From BBC

We're told to turn off our phones - such is the secrecy around the production of Ukraine's Flamingo cruise missile.

From BBC

Related Words

• ammunition
• bomb
• bullet
• projectile
• rocket

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.