From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishspearspear1 /spɪə $ spɪr/ noun [countable] 1 PMWa pole with a sharp pointed blade at one end, used as a weapon in the past2 a thin pointed stem of a plant asparagus spears
Examples from the Corpus
spear• James Mellaart reports evidence from Catal Huyuk for the use of the slingshot, bow and arrow, lance, and spear.• He fought them, one man against a whole company, and his flying spear struck down warrior after warrior.• He waited, wondering, clutching his spear.• As they move forward, Tepilit, without warning, hurls his spear at the district officer from a few feet away.• If the spear killed attackers, so much the better.• Many are armoured; for the shield may be as important for victory as the sword or the spear.spearspear2 verb [transitive] 1 PMWto push or throw a spear into something, especially in order to kill it2 DFULIFTto push a pointed object, usually a fork, into something, so that you can pick it up → stab→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
spear• At its current pace, the industrial average could spear both of my numbers by the end of next week.• He used to spear fish for grouper at the north end, then cook his catch for tourists.• Vicious thugs had speared him leaving a gaping wound exposing the bone.• The numbers in her text refer to footnotes in which she spears the novelist with chapter and verse.• He speared the plantain to one side of the pan and ladled in four globs of batter.• But each time it was a sudden sortie and took Trondur by surprise so he was not ready to spear them.• Fortunately he managed to duck out of the way of a lump of glass as it speared towards his neck.• His brown and blue tie was speared with a tie-pin in the shape of a harp.Origin spear1 1. Old English spere2. (1400-1500) spire 