launcher

English

Etymology

From launch +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈlɔːntʃ.ə/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈlɑnt͡ʃ.ɚ/, /ˈlɔnt͡ʃ.ɚ/
• Rhymes: -ɔːntʃə(ɹ)

Noun

launcher (plural launchers)

1. One who or that which launches. A device that throws something or the person who initiates a launch.

   The catapult made a good launcher for the small projectile.

   They shot down the helicopter with a rocket launcher.

   • 2015, H. Clark Barrett, The Shape of Thought: How Mental Adaptations Evolve, page 110:

     This actually occurs in perception of non-colliding Michotte displays: Even though there is a gap between the launcher stopping and the launchee starting, the launchee's motion appears to have been caused, at a distance, by the approach of the launcher […]

2. (computing) An application that launches another or others, often holding icons or menus for frequently used programs.

Derived terms

• custard launcher
• grenade launcher
• rocket launcher

Translations

a device that throws something

• Esperanto: ĵetilo
• Finnish: laukaisin (fi), heitin (fi)
• German: Abschussgerät n
• Greek: προωθητής (el) m (proothitís), εκτοξευτής (el) m (ektoxeftís)
• Malay: pelancar
• Polish: wyrzutnia (pl) f
• Portuguese: lançador (pt)
• Romanian: lansator (ro) n
• Russian: гранатомёт (ru) m (granatomjót)
• Ukrainian: гранатоме́т (hranatomét)

computing: an application that launches another or others

• French: lanceur (fr) m
• Portuguese: iniciador (pt) m, inicializador m
• Spanish: iniciador (es) m

Anagrams

• relaunch