HARPOON

harpoon

(noun) a spear with a shaft and barbed point for throwing; used for catching large fish or whales; a strong line is attached to it

harpoon

(verb) spear with a harpoon; “harpoon whales”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Noun

harpoon (plural harpoons)

A spearlike weapon with a barbed head used in hunting whales and large fish.

(slang) A harmonica.

Verb

harpoon (third-person singular simple present harpoons, present participle harpooning, simple past and past participle harpooned)

(transitive) To shoot something with a harpoon.

Source: Wiktionary

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Har*poon", n. Etym: [F. harpon, LL. harpo, perh. of Ger. origin, fr. the harp; cf. F. harper to take and grasp strongly, harpe a dog's claw, harpin boathook (the sense of hook coming from the shape of the harp); but cf. also Gr. harpy. Cf. Harp.]

Definition: A spear or javelin used to strike and kill large fish, as whales; a harping iron. It consists of a long shank, with a broad, fiat, triangular head, sharpened at both edges, and is thrown by hand, or discharged from a gun. Harpoon fork, a kind of hayfork, consisting of bar with hinged barbs at one end a loop for a rope at the other end, used for lifting hay from the load by horse power.

– Harpoon gun, a gun used in the whale fishery for shooting the harpoon into a whale.

Har*poon", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Harpooned; p. pr. & vb. n. Harpooning.]

Definition: To strike, catch, or kill with a harpoon.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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