thrust

(thrŭst)

v. thrust, thrust·ing, thrusts

v.tr.

1. To push or drive quickly and forcefully: thrust a pole into the ground. See Synonyms at push.

2. To cause to project or extend: poplars thrusting their branches upward; thrust out his finger.

a. To force into a specified condition or situation: He was thrust into a position of awesome responsibility.

b. To force or impose on an unwilling or improper recipient: "Some have greatness thrust upon them" (Shakespeare).

4. Archaic To stab; pierce.

v.intr.

1. To shove something into or at something else: thrust at his opponent's chest with a foil.

2. To grow or extend upwards: "The cathedral ... thrust up suddenly, much taller than the surrounding houses" (Leonard Michaels).

3. To force one's way; press forward: "I watched a young hare thrust through periwinkle under the window" (Sam Pickering).

a. A forceful shove or push: inserted the key with a thrust.

b. A lunge or stab.

a. A driving force or pressure.

b. The forward-directed force developed in a jet or rocket engine as a reaction to the high-velocity rearward ejection of exhaust gases.

c. Outward or lateral stress in a structure, as that exerted by an arch or vault.

a. The essential meaning; the point: the general thrust of his remarks.

b. The central purpose or objective: The whole thrust of the project was to make money.

4. A forceful movement, especially an advance or attack by an armed force.

[Middle English thrusten, from Old Norse thrȳsta; see treud- in Indo-European roots.]

thrust′ful adj.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

thrusting

(ˈθrʌstɪŋ)

adj

ambitious and having great drive: a thrusting young executive.

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

thrusting - a sharp hand gesture (resembling a blow); "he warned me with a jab with his finger"; "he made a thrusting motion with his fist"

jab, jabbing, poking, poke, thrust

gesture - motion of hands or body to emphasize or help to express a thought or feeling

Translations

thrusting

[ˈθrʌstɪŋ] adj [person] → dynamique

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

thrusting

[ˈθrʌstɪŋ] adj → (troppo) intraprendente

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

Upon the bloody mound we met them, hand to hand, stabbing where the quarters were too close to cut, thrusting when we could push a foeman to arm's length; and mingled with the wild cry of the Okarian there rose and fell the glorious words: "For Helium!

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As the empty brass cartridges were ejected, the return boys scrambled on the deck for them, esteeming them as very precious objects and thrusting them, still warm, into the empty holes in their ears.

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Men danced about outside, thrusting in with iron bars and trying to separate them.

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He averred, that upon first thrusting in for him, a leg was presented; but well knowing that that was not as it ought to be, and might occasion great trouble; -- he had thrust back the leg, and by a dexterous heave and toss, had wrought a somerset upon the Indian; so that with the next trial, he came forth in the good old way --head foremost.

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On and on came Alleyne, his jagged point now at his foeman's face, now at his throat, now at his chest, still stabbing and thrusting to pass the line of steel which covered him.

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His tongue was swollen with thirst; he relieved its fever by thrusting it forward from between his teeth into the cold air.

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Trent at last released him, and, thrusting the bottle of brandy into his coat-pocket, returned to his game of Patience.

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