I. ˈdär]t, ˈdȧ], usu ]d.+V\ noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English daroth dart, Old High German tart, Old Norse darrathr; perhaps akin to Greek thoos sharp, Sanskrit dhārā blade
1.
a. archaic : a light spear : javelin
b. archaic : arrow
c. : a small missile usually with a shaft pointed and weighted at one end and feathered on the other (as one used in a blowgun or one thrown by hand at a target in the game of darts)
2.
a. : something projected with sudden speed ; especially : a sharp glance
the dart that shot from his eyes was of aggressive honesty — Winston Churchill
b. : something that sharply or suddenly wounds or pains
darts of sarcasm
3. : something with a slender pointed shaft or outline: as
a. : a small sharp-pointed shaft of carbonate of lime secreted in the dart sac of a land snail
b. : the guard pin in a watch
c. : a stitched tapering fold used especially in fitting garments to the curves of the body
d. : an Australian pompano ( Trachinotus botla )
e. : a pointed element in a wave traced in an electroencephalogram especially in epilepsy
4. : a quick movement : a sudden jump
she fluttered round, making helpless little darts — Dorothy Sayers
5. slang Australia
a. : plan , scheme
b. : something particularly to one's taste
6. darts plural but singular in construction : a game in which darts are thrown at a target and scored according to their nearness to the bull's-eye
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English darten, from dart, n.
transitive verb
1. obsolete : to pierce with or as if with a dart
2. : to throw (an object) with a sudden movement
dart a javelin at the foe
3. : to thrust or move with sudden speed
the snake darting its head this way and that
who made man, with powers which dart him from earth to heaven in a moment — Laurence Sterne
she darted out her hand like a flash — W.H.Hudson †1922
specifically : to cast (as one's eyes) with suddenness or haste
he shivered and darted a look over his shoulder — Ellery Queen
4. : to furnish with a dart (as the waist of a garment in tapering)
intransitive verb
: to move, spring, or jump with suddenness or impetuosity
his tongue darts about like a dragonfly — Walter de la Mare
green eyes darting over the impassive faces of the judges — Earle Birney
streets that dart out at odd angles — American Guide Series: Arkansas
III. transitive verb
: to shoot with a dart containing a usually tranquilizing drug