boomerang

Syllables: boo·mer·ang/ˈbuːməɹæŋ/

More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations

British/ˈbʉwməɹaŋ/

boomerang noun: any of various traditional throwing sticks used for hunting or combat by Australian aborigines, including the symmetrical, crescent-shaped, type (the returning boomerang).

Image: The Trustees of the British Museum, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun

boomerang (plural boomerangs)

Any of various traditional throwing sticks used for hunting or combat by Australian aborigines, including the symmetrical, crescent-shaped, type (the returning boomerang).
- Some resemblance to terrestrial things, it is true, everyone can behold in the heavens. Corona, for example, is like a crown, or, as the Australian black fellows know, it is like a boomerang, and we can understand why they give it the name of that curious curved missile.1884, Andrew Lang, “Star Myths”, in Custom and Myth
- With boomerang and spear they hunted the kangaroo and emu, and fought their battles beneath the eucalyptus forests; their minds, fresh, untroubled, contented, oblivious alike of noble ideals and philosophic principles.1897, Warren Bert Kimberly, History of West Australia
Synonyms:

kylie
A flat curved airfoil that spins about an axis perpendicular to the direction of flight, originally used in various parts of the world as a hunting weapon or, in returnable types, for sports or training.
- Before long, however, these pike-like devices were mostly superseded by spring-operated guns of various types. Most of them shot spinning disks, crosses, or small boomerangs of thin steel.1951, John Wyndham, The Day of the Triffids, Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, published 1954, page 43
- "Don't worry, boy, I know the trick, / And to you I'm gonna show it. / If you want your boomerang to come back, / Well first you've got to... throw it."1961, Charlie Drake, song, My Boomerang Won't Come Back
A breakdancing move in which the performer walks on their hands while keeping the legs raised off the ground.
(Australian rules football) A boomerang kick.
A device for changing the color of a followspot.
- Roll: A live action changing from one color to another. Typically requires dexterity to "crossfade" between two colors in the boomerang with one hand while following with the other.2013, Steven Louis Shelley, A Practical Guide to Stage Lighting
- If you are spot one you should push down on the first lever on the boomerang to load frame one. Spot two should do the same with frame five. On the go, both spot ops should run their dowser levers to bring the light up on the target specified by the cue caller.2013, John Holloway, Illustrated Theatre Production Guide, page 144
(RAF slang) The early return of an aircraft whose mission was aborted, often due to technical failures.
- For quotations using this term, see Citations:boomerang.
A cocktail made with rye whiskey and Swedish punsch.

Verb

boomerang (third-person singular simple present boomerangs, present participle boomeranging, simple past and past participle boomeranged)

(intransitive) To return or rebound unexpectedly, especially when the result is undesired; to backfire.
- "Well, there must be some flaw about this," I suggested. "If your magnet is so strong as all that, you would have your own broadside boomeranging back upon you."1882 March 7, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Stark Munro Letters
- "Oh," they yelled, "you could, eh? Well, let's see you do it, then! Let's see you do it! Let's see you do it! Now!" In a moment the crew of little spectators were gibing at Horace. The blow that would make Jimmie's humiliation complete! Instead, it had boomeranged Horace into the mud.1899 November, “"Showin' Off"”, in Harper's New Monthly Magazine, volume 99, number 594
(intransitive) To travel in a curved path.
- He said that to the horse as it boomeranged off again and broke away through the scrub.1894, Henry Lawson, “The Mystery of Dave Regan”, in Short Stories in Prose and Verse
(RAF slang) To abort a mission and return to base early.
- For quotations using this term, see Citations:boomerang.

boomerang meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

boomerang in Hindi

flat curved airfoil: बुमेरांग bumerāṅg

boomerang in Tamil

வளரி, வளரித்தடி, வளைதடி, தாக்கித் திரும்பும் குறுந்தடி, தன்னையே சுடும்வினை, தன்னையே திருப்பித்தாக்கும் வாதம்

boomerang in Urdu

بومرانگ, بومیرانگ, بومرنگ

More languagesFewer languages

boomerang in Bengali: বুমেরাং bumeraṅ
boomerang in Telugu: బూమేరాంగ్, బూమరాంగ్, బూమెరాంగ్
boomerang in Malayalam: തിരിഞ്ഞടിക്കുക, തിരിച്ചടിക്കുക, തിരിച്ചുവരുക, തിരിച്ചടി നേരിടുക
boomerang in Kannada: ಬೂಮರಾಂಗ್, ಬೂಮೇರಾಂಗ್, ಬೂಮೆರಾಂಗ್
boomerang in Punjabi: ਬੂਮਰੈਂਗ, ਬੂਮਰਾਂਗ, ਬੁਮਰੈਂਗ
boomerang in Gujarati: બૂમરેંગ, બૂમરેન્ગ, બુમેરાંગ
boomerang in Odia: ବୁମେରାଙ୍ଗ, ବୁମେରାଙ୍ଗ୍, ବୁମରାଙ୍ଗ
boomerang in Nepali: बुमेराङ, बुमराङ, बुमेरांग
boomerang in Tagalog: haliryo, bumeran
boomerang in Arabic: بُومَرَانْغ būmarānḡ, عُرْجُد ʕurjud
boomerang in Indonesian: bumerang
boomerang in Persian: بومرنگ

Examples of boomerang in a sentence

In the opening, Pawn-grabbing expeditions or premature mating attacks are apt to boomerang.1949 October, I. A. Horowitz, “How to Win in the Opening”, in Chess Review:
That's why raising taxes would boomerang.1985 February 2, Ronald Reagan, Presidential Radio Address:

All 18 example sentences with boomerang

Synonyms of boomerang

kylie

Forms of boomerang

Noun
plural	boomerangs
Verb
third-person singular present	boomerangs
present participle	boomeranging
past participle	boomeranged
past	boomeranged

Plural of boomerang: boomerangs

Origin of boomerang

Origin uncertain. Possibly from Thurawal. Long regarded as from the Sydney language, but early evidence unclear. The form boo-mer-it is glossed, c.1790, as 'scimeter' (i.e., scimitar) and the word bumarang, bumarañ is not explicitly recorded in the Sydney Language until 1903.

Words formed from boomerang

Phrases with boomerang

Questions about boomerang

What does boomerang mean?: Boomerang means any of various traditional throwing sticks used for hunting or combat by Australian aborigines, including the symmetrical, crescent-shaped, type (the returning boomerang).
What is boomerang in Hindi?: Boomerang in Hindi is बुमेरांग (bumerāṅg). See Boomerang meaning in Hindi.
How do you use boomerang in a sentence?: In the opening, Pawn-grabbing expeditions or premature mating attacks are apt to boomerang.
What part of speech is boomerang?: Boomerang can be a noun or a verb.
How do you pronounce boomerang?: Boomerang is pronounced /ˈbuːməɹæŋ/ (UK).
What is the plural of boomerang?: The plural of boomerang is boomerangs.

Words near boomerang in the dictionary

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-boomerang.wav.

Cite this entry: “boomerang.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/boomerang. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.