spear
English · Thesaurus
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spear¹
- /spɪə̯(ɹ)/ UK
- /spɪɹ/ Canada, US
Rhymes with -ɪə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
From Middle English spere, sperre, spear, from Old English spere, from Proto-West Germanic *speru, from Proto-Germanic *speru, from Proto-Indo-European *sperH-.
Cognates
See also West Frisian spear, Dutch speer, German Speer, Old Norse spjǫr, *sparrô, Middle Dutch sparre (“rafter”), Old Norse sparri (“spar, rafter”), sperra (“rafter, beam”); also Latin sparus (“short spear”), Albanian ferrë (“thorn, thornbush”).
noun spears
- A long stick with a sharp tip used as a weapon for throwing or thrusting, or anything used to make a thrusting motion. It's not like you killed someone It's not like you drove a spiteful spear into his side Talk to Jesus Christ as if he knows the reasons why He did it all for you
- A soldier armed with such a weapon; a spearman. Now toil'd the Bruce, the battle done , To use his conquest boldly won; And gave command for horse and spear To press the Southron's scatter'd rear
- A lance with barbed prongs, used by fishermen to retrieve fish.
- An illegal maneuver using the end of a hockey stick to strike into another hockey player.
- In professional wrestling, a running tackle in which the wrestler's shoulder is driven into the opponent's midsection.
- A shoot, as of grass; a spire.
- The feather of a horse.
- The rod to which the bucket, or plunger, of a pump is attached; a pump rod.
- A long, thin strip from a vegetable. asparagus and broccoli spears
verb spears · spearing · speared
- To pierce with a spear. By the 1970s, herders were spearing rhinos and poisoning lions to protest the loss of their land to conservation, then represented by the independent Kenyan government.
- To penetrate or strike with, or as if with, any long narrow object; to make a thrusting motion that catches an object on the tip of a long device. Former teammate Derek Sanderson recalls that Maki hit Ted from behind as Green was clearing the puck from the Boston zone. Green turned to knock Maki down, but Maki speared him as he rose from the ice.
- To tackle an opponent by ramming into them with one's helmet.
- To shoot into a long stem, as some plants do. you may prepare them for spearing by laying the Keys in Earth or Sand
- To ignore as a social snub. The Monthly Magazine, Or, British Register for 1798 included an explanation by a reader of how the cut was carried out in his college days in a lengthy letter to the editor, signed by the pseudonym "Ansonius." In his rambling letter, Ansonius noted that when he was at college, " … if a man passed an
adjective
- Male. a spear counterpart
- Pertaining to male family members. the spear side of the family
Opposite: distaff
spear²
- /spɪə̯(ɹ)/ UK
- /spɪɹ/ Canada, US
Rhymes with -ɪə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
Alteration of spire, from Middle English spyre, spier, spir, from Old English spīr (“stalk of a plant, shoot, blade”). More at spire.
noun spears
- The sprout of a plant, stalk
- A church spire.
Spear³
Where it comes from
From Middle English spere (“spear”), from Old English spere (“spear”), variously intending a spearman, a spearmaker, or a person tall and thin in a way reminiscent of a spear.
proper noun Spears
- An English surname transferred from the nickname or originating as an occupation.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: lance, shaft, gig, fizgig, fishgig, spear up, javelin, spearhead, assagai, trident, weapon, launch, pierce, nozzle, haul, roll
adjective
Opposite: distaff
Translations
Every language
noun long stick with a sharp tip
| Español | lanza, venablo, azagaya |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 창 chang |
| 日本語 | 槍 yari, 鑓 yari |
| 中文 | 矛 máo, 槍 /枪 |
| हिन्दी | भाला bhālā, शूल śūl, नेजा nejā, बरछा barchā, सूरी sūrī |
| Kiswahili | mkuki |
| Português | lança |
| Français | lance |
| Deutsch | Speer |
| Italiano | lancia, asta, alabarda, picca |
| Ελληνικά | ακόντιο akóntio, δόρυ dóry, κοντάρι kontári, λόγχη lónchi |
| Română | lance, suliță |
| Русский | копьё kopʹjó, пи́ка píka, дро́тик drótik |
| Tiếng Việt | thương, giáo |
| العربية | رُمْح rumḥ, حَرْبَة ḥarba |
| עברית | חֲנִית khanít |
noun sharp tool used by fishermen to retrieve fish
| Español | arpón |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 簎 yasu, 銛 mori |
| Kiswahili | chusa |
| Português | arpão |
| Français | harpon |
| Italiano | fiocina, arpione |
| Ελληνικά | καμάκι kamáki |
| Русский | острога́ ostrogá |
verb strike with any long narrow object
| Ελληνικά | λογχίζω lonchízo |
|---|
Talk about this word "spear." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/spear. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. spear. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/spear "spear." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/spear.Cite this
@misc{spear_2026,
title = {spear},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/spear},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
