boomerang

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“
Before the birds had recovered from their fright, the boomerang was again in their midst, whizzing round and round, as if endued with life, and committing almost as much damage as before.

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Definitions (10)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (4)

  1. noun A flat, curved, usually wooden missile configured so that when hurled it returns to the thrower.
  2. noun A statement or course of action that backfires.
  3. intransitive verb To have the opposite effect from the one intended; backfire.
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Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (2)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

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Examples (50)

  • The crafty wallaroo picked up the boomerang, and, taking careful aim, threw it with all his strength. —  Some Myths and Legends of the Australian Aborigines
  • He conceived the idea that the principle of the aboriginal boomerang could be applied to the propeller of steamships. —  Thomas Mitchell
  • ~Juliet Carinreap Kindness, like a boomerang, always returns. —  Recently Uploaded Slideshows
  • What do you call a boomerang that doesn't come back? —  Yahoo! Answers: Latest Questions
  • As you defeat enemies, you'll level up and be able to upgrade your abilities: things like tossing your lightsaber like a boomerang, the aforementioned Force Lightning, etc. —  Top Stories - Google News
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This word has been looked up 83 times.

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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

battle-axe ·  birthstone ·  recreancy ·  scalping-knife ·  senescence ·  reata ·  assegai ·  ogham ·  javelin ·  45-degree ·  war-club ·  bola

Used in the same contextWord Family

boomerang:   boomerangs
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Dharuk bumariny.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. Recently also boomering, bomerang, bomarang; from a native name in New South Wales; wo-mur-rāng and bumarin are cited as aboriginal names of clubs.
 

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/ˈbuməræŋ/
by American Heritage

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