spear thrower
1
8.2
- noun
- The skilled hunter used a spear thrower to launch his spear more accurately and at a greater distance.
- javelins propelled by spear throwers
Examples
-
When his new spears were finished and dried, he and Ayla took them to the target area to try them out with the spear-thrower and choose which ones each wanted.
Fiction book (1990) -
Then, seeing that Jondalar had a spear in readiness, she also placed a spear on her spear-thrower and, holding them easily but carefully, started in the direction Jondalar had indicated.
Fiction book (1990) -
Though the idea was ingenious, the spear-thrower itself was deceptively simple.
Fiction book (1990) -
Hurling a spear with a spear-thrower was similar to throwing it by hand; the difference was in the results.
Fiction book (1990) -
The smaller points appropriate for projectile weapons, such as javelins flung with spear-throwers, become widespread later.
Academic text (1991) -
The javelins propelled by spear-throwers, instead, are long-distance weapons that can be thrown by masses of warriors.
Academic text (1991) -
Perhaps it was a certain tech advance such as the spear thrower, bow and arrow, or a novel way of making or using fire that spread among tribes in the same way as the Clovis point, which gave them an advantage.
Blog text (33) -
I and others now believe that in this war, the spear-thrower used in warfare by the Teotihuacanos was adopted for the first time as a weapon in the Maya lowlands.
Academic text (1991) -
Ayla had stopped practicing with her spear-thrower and put it and her spears in the holder that she had adapted to wear across her back over one shoulder, the way Jondalar did.
Fiction book (1990) -
Holding the spear-thrower horizontally in his right hand, with his thumb and index fingers through the two front loops, he quickly slapped a spear into the groove.
Academic text (2002)
Synonyms
1
6.1
A person or machine that throws things quickly and strongly
1
9.9
A large ancient weapon that shoots heavy arrows or stones during war
1
8.2
A tool like a stick that helps you throw a spear or dart farther
1
8.9
A wooden tool used to throw a spear farther and faster
A flat wooden tool used like a sling to throw a spear farther
How Far
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is transparently built from 'spear' + 'thrower' and an average B1 learner who knows both constituents will infer it denotes something that throws or propels spears. Although there may be minor ambiguity whether the 'thrower' is a person or a device, the core idea (an agent or tool for throwing spears) is directly derivable from the parts and thus predictable.
Etymology
Spear thrower comes from the simple idea of a tool that helps you 'throw' a spear farther, because the thrower (a short stick or handle) acts like a longer arm and gives you more power. That's why the word means a 'device' used to send spears or darts with more distance and force.