The term 'torpedo' has roots in the Latin 'torpere', meaning 'to be sluggish or numb'. It originally referred to a type of fish, the electric ray, which could incapacitate its prey. Later, inventor Robert Fulton adapted it to name an explosive underwater weapon, similar to a mine, eventually evolving to refer to the self-propelled projectile known today.
El término 'torpedo' tiene sus raíces en el latín 'torpēre', que significa 'ser perezoso o entumecido'. Originalmente se refería a un tipo de pez, el torpedo o raya eléctrica, que podía incapacitar a sus presas. Más tarde, el inventor Robert Fulton lo adaptó para nombrar un arma submarina explosiva, similar a una mina, y eventualmente evolucionó para referirse al proyectil autopropulsado que conocemos hoy.
| Word | torpedo |
|---|---|
| Date | May 26, 2017 |
| Type | noun |
| Syllables | tor-PEE-doh |
| Etymology | Like the adjective torpid, torpedo can be traced back to the Latin verb torpēre, meaning "to be sluggish or numb." In Latin torpedo literally meant "stiffness" or "numbness." Torpedo was also the name given in Latin to the fish known as the electric ray, and it was as a name for the fish that torpedo first entered English. During the Napoleonic Wars, the American inventor Robert Fulton experimented with an explosive charge for use against warships which he called a "torpedo" (and which we would now refer to as a mine) after the electric ray's ability to incapacitate creatures with an electrical discharge. Fulton was also the inventor of the Nautilus, an early hand-powered submarine which was one of the precursors of the vessels that would deliver the more familiar cigar-shaped torpedoes with such devastating effects during the 20th century's two World Wars. |
| Examples | Among the undersea wreckage, the divers found an unexploded torpedo. "An interactive exhibit also takes 'sailors' aboard the USS Tang, a submarine simulation, where you can relive the boat's final, heroic patrol before it sank—torpedo launches, sirens, and chaos ensue." — Meaghan O'Neill, The Boston Globe, 19 Mar. 2017 |
| Definition | 1 : electric ray 2 : a weapon (such as a thin cylindrical self-propelled underwater projectile) for destroying ships by rupturing their hulls below the waterline 3 : a large sandwich on a long split roll with any of a variety of fillings : submarine |
Tags: wordoftheday::noun
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