ENGLISH
REFERENCE

kite

n. · v.
US //ˈkaɪt// UK //kˈaɪt// kite
  1. 1 flying toy (n.)
    A2 Elementary

    a light frame covered with paper or cloth that you fly in the air on the end of a long string.

    a light frame covered with thin material, designed to be flown in the wind at the end of a long tether.

    Example

    The children took their kite to the beach because it was a windy day.

    Example

    The festival featured hundreds of traditional kites, ranging from simple diamond shapes to elaborate silk dragons that required multiple handlers.

  2. 2 geometric shape (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Math

    a flat shape with four sides where the two top sides are the same length and the two bottom sides are the same length.

    a quadrilateral with two pairs of adjacent sides that are equal in length.

    Example

    In geometry class, we learned how to calculate the area of a kite.

    Example

    The architect utilised a series of interlocking kites in the floor tiling pattern to create a sense of dynamic movement across the lobby.
    • quadrilateral
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  1. 3 aircraft (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Informal British English Aviation

    a casual or old-fashioned word for an aeroplane.

    an informal or slang term for an aircraft, particularly used in military or early aviation contexts.

    Example

    The old pilot still referred to his small plane as a sturdy little kite.

    Example

    During the briefing, the squadron leader expressed concerns about sending such outdated kites into a modern combat zone.
  2. 4 bad cheque (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Slang Finance

    a cheque written for an amount of money that is not actually in the bank account.

    a fraudulent cheque or bill of exchange used to obtain credit or cash without sufficient underlying funds.

    Example

    The shopkeeper realised the man was trying to pass a kite and called the police.

    Example

    The investigation revealed a sophisticated scheme involving several kites used to artificially inflate the company's apparent cash reserves.
  3. 5 to fly or move quickly (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    to move upwards very quickly or to travel using a kite.

    to cause to move upwards rapidly or to travel by means of kite-traction, as in kitesurfing.

    Example

    The price of the tickets kited as the concert date got closer.

    Example

    We spent the afternoon kiting across the bay, enjoying the steady breeze and the lack of other boats.
  4. 6 to lead or lure (v.)
    C1 Advanced Slang

    to make an enemy follow you, usually to pull them away from their friends or into a trap.

    to attack an opponent from a distance while staying out of reach, or to lure an enemy into a specific location.

    Example

    In the video game, I had to kite the monster away from the rest of my team.

    Example

    The player successfully kited the boss around the arena, slowly depleting its health while avoiding any direct confrontation.
Etymology 1

The noun is from Middle English kyte, kīte, kete (“a kite endemic to Europe, especially the red kite (Milvus milvus)”), from Old English cȳta (“kite; bittern”), from Proto-West Germanic kūtijō, diminutive of Proto-Germanic kūts (“bird of prey”), from Proto-Indo-European *gewH-d- (“to cry, screech”). The English word is cognate with Scots kyt, kyte (“kite; bird of prey”), Middle High German kiuzelīn, kützlīn (“owling”) (modern German Kauz (“owl”)). Possibly a doublet of coot. Sense 3 (“lightweight toy”) is from the fact that it hovers in the air like the bird. The verb is derived from the noun.

Etymology 2

Uncertain; possibly: * from Middle English kit, kitte (“wooden bucket or tub; (figuratively) belly”), possibly from Middle Dutch kitte (“wooden vessel of hooped staves”) (modern Dutch kit (“metal can used mainly for coal”)), further etymology unknown; or from Old Norse kýta (“bag, stomach (of a fish)”), from Proto-Germanic kūtiz. from Middle English kid (attested only in compounds such as kide-nẹ̄re (“kidney; region of the kidneys, loins”)), possibly from Old English cyde, cydde (“belly”), cwiþ (“belly; womb”), from Proto-Germanic kweþuz (“belly, stomach”), from Proto-Indo-European gʷet- or gwet- (“rounding, swelling; entrails, stomach”), doubtfully from gʷu-, *gū- (“to bend, bow, curve, distend, vault”). The English word is cognate with Icelandic kviði (“womb”), kviður (“stomach”), kýta (“stomach of a fish; roe”), Middle Low German kūt (“entrails”), West Flemish kijte, kiete (“fleshy part of the body”).

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Coptic ⲕⲓⲧⲉ (kite), from Demotic Egyptian qt, from Egyptian qdt.

Idioms2 entries

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