ricochet means A method of firing a projectile so that it skips along a surface. It carries an Arena rating of 1692, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, ricochet ranks #2,338 of 14,361 for Most Ingenious Words, #2,374 of 14,451 for Most Whimsical Words, #2,430 of 14,340 for Most Vivid Words, #2,463 of 14,297 for Words That Escaped Their Books.
ricochet is pronounced /ˈɹɪk.ə.ʃeɪ/.
Why “ricochet” is a great word
A projectile's glancing, unpredictable rebound off a surface at a shallow angle. Borrowed from French *ricochet*, of uncertain origin; first attested in English in a military context in 1758. Unlike 'deflect' (which implies a controlled, predictable change in course) or 'rebound' (a general bouncing return), a ricochet is a wild, retained-velocity skid governed by chance. It is the lethal, singing zag of a bullet off concrete, the frantic, stuttering dance of a flat stone across a pond, or the sudden, wrong-direction flight of a shattered tile from a hammer's blow—a stark demonstration of intended force gone astray, leaving chaos in its new, unforeseen trajectory.
Etymology
Borrowed from French ricochet, of uncertain origin.
noun
- A method of firing a projectile so that it skips along a surface.
- An instance of ricocheting; a glancing rebound.“And you've not been hit / By flying lead / You'd better close your eyes / Bow your head / Wait for the ricochet”
verb
- To rebound off something wildly in a seemingly random direction.“Everything that could go right for England did although they never felt lucky and they chuckled at Kane’s third that ricocheted off his heel while he was looking the other way.”
- To operate upon by ricochet firing.
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- fusillade 82% match — The simultaneous firing of a number of firearms. vs ricochet →
- rafale 81% match — A short, intense burst of artillery fire from a number of weapons fired with the intention of overwhelming resistance or routing an attacking force. vs ricochet →
- cannonade 80% match — The firing of artillery for a length of time. vs ricochet →
- boomerang 80% match — Any of various traditional throwing sticks used for hunting or combat by Australian aborigines, including the symmetrical, crescent-shaped, type (the returning boomerang). vs ricochet →
- rencounter 80% match — To meet, encounter, come into contact with. vs ricochet →
- recoil 80% match — A starting or falling back; a rebound; a shrinking. vs ricochet →
- reconnaissance 79% match — The act of scouting or exploring (especially military or medical) to gain information. vs ricochet →
- repercuss 79% match — To drive or beat back. vs ricochet →