noun
- any of various accipitrine birds with long, pointed wings and, usually, a forked tail: they prey esp. on insects, reptiles, and small mammals
- Chiefly Brit. a greedy, grasping person
- a light frame, usually of wood, covered with paper, cloth, or plastic, to be flown in the wind at the end of a string
- the topmost sails of a ship, for use in a light breeze
- a bad check or similar fictitious or worthless financial instrument used to raise money or maintain credit temporarily
Origin:
ME < OE cyta, akin to MLowG kuten, to gossip < IE echoic base *gou-, to scream > Gr goan, to moan
intransitive verb kited, kiting
- Informal
- to fly like a kite; soar
- to move lightly and rapidly
- to get money or credit by using bad checks, etc.
transitive verb
to issue (a bad check, etc.) as a kite