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kite (kīt)
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n.
1.
a. A light framework covered with cloth, plastic, or paper, designed to be flown in the wind at the end of a long string or multiple lines, especially for recreation.
b. A parafoil flown in a similar manner for recreation.
c. A power kite.
2. A quadrilateral with two distinct pairs of congruent, adjacent sides. Also called deltoid.
3. Any of the light sails of a ship that are used only in a light wind.
4. Any of various graceful predatory birds of the family Accipitridae, having long pointed wings and often a forked tail.
5. An instance of check kiting.
v. kit·ed, kit·ing, kites
v.intr.
1. To fly like a kite; soar or glide.
2. To get money or credit with a kite.
v.tr.
To use (a check) in furtherance of a check kiting scheme.
[Middle English, bird of prey, from Old English cȳta.]
(click for a larger image)
kite
In kite ABCD, AB = AD and CB = CD.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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