spear

noun

1. a weapon consisting of a long wooden shaft with a sharp point, usually of metal or stone, for thrusting or throwing
2. any spearlike, often forked, implement used for thrusting, as in one kind of fishing
3. spearman

4. Etymology: var. of spire; ? infl. by spear above

   a long blade or shoot, as of grass

Etymology: ME spere < OE (akin to Ger speer) < IE base *sper- > spar, L sparus

transitive verb

1. to pierce or stab with something pointed, as a spear
2. to catch (fish, etc.) with a spear
3. Informal to extend the arm so as to make a one-handed catch of (a baseball, etc.)

intransitive verb

1. to pierce or shoot like a spear

2. Etymology: cf. spear

   to sprout into a long stem