boomerang
Meanings
noun
- Any of various traditional throwing sticks used for hunting or combat by Australian aborigines, including the symmetrical, crescent-shaped, type (the returning boomerang).
- A flat curved airfoil that spins about an axis perpendicular to the direction of flight, originally used in various parts of the world as a hunting weapon or, in returnable types, for sports or training.
- A breakdancing move in which the performer walks on their hands while keeping the legs raised off the ground.
- A boomerang kick.
- A device for changing the color of a followspot.
- The early return of an aircraft whose mission was aborted, often due to technical failures.
- A cocktail made with rye whiskey and Swedish punsch.
verb
- To return or rebound unexpectedly, especially when the result is undesired; to backfire.
- To travel in a curved path.
- To abort a mission and return to base early.
Pronunciation
Word forms
Etymology
Origin uncertain. Possibly from Thurawal. Long regarded as from the Sydney language, but early evidence unclear. The form boo-mer-it is glossed, c.1790, as 'scimeter' (i.e., scimitar) and the word bumarang, bumarañ is not explicitly recorded in the Sydney Language until 1903.
Synonyms
Related words
Derived words
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