noun / verb
harpoon
har-POON/hɑːrˈpuːn/
A barbed spear for hunting large sea animals, or to hunt with one.
The harpoon has backward-facing barbs and a rope for retrieving its catch.
Etymology
The ancestor named a clamp used to fasten stones together. That gripping function connects it to the hunting spear, whose barbs hold its quarry.
In context
this is the rope that will be fast to the Harpoon itself a power driven winch is used for hauling in the whales
More examples
- The crew harpoons a whale from a small boat.
- The museum displays harpoons once used by whalers.
- A barbed tip keeps the harpoon from slipping free.
Forms
harpoon · harpoons · harpooned · harpooning
harpooner noun — A person who hunts with a harpoon.
Similar words
- spear
- A broader term for a pointed weapon, not necessarily barbed.