parachute

[par-uh-shoot] /ˈpær əˌʃut/
noun
1.
a folding, umbrellalike, fabric device with cords supporting a harness or straps for allowing a person, object, package, etc., to float down safely through the air from a great height, especially from an aircraft, rendered effective by the resistance of the air that expands it during the descent and reduces the velocity of its fall.
2.
parachute brake.
3.
Horology. a shockproofing device for the balance staff of a watch, consisting of a yielding, springlike support for the bearing at either end.
4.
Informal.
  1. the aggregate of benefits, as severance pay or vacation pay, given an employee who is dismissed from a company.
  2. golden parachute.
verb (used with object), parachuted, parachuting.
5.
to drop or land (troops, equipment, supplies, etc.) by parachute.
verb (used without object), parachuted, parachuting.
6.
to descend by parachute.
Origin
1775-85; < French, equivalent to para- para-2 + chute fall; see chute1
Related forms
parachutic, adjective
parachutist, parachuter, noun
Examples from the web for parachute
  • It is rare for someone to parachute into a discipline in which they haven't already published and nonetheless obtain grant money.
  • He has made four parachute drops from planes out of control or in fog.
  • They started on the bottom and didn't parachute in from business school.
  • It is said that the brothers' seven-foot frame parachute worked as planned on one of the animals.
  • The way our society addresses this problem has been about as effective as a parachute that opens on the second bounce.
  • To make up for its absence, the government was forced to parachute cats into the area.
  • And plenty of time for new candidates to parachute into the race.
  • They spread their arms and legs in freefall, deploy a parachute about two-thirds of the way down, and land safely on the ground.
  • Featuring commentary from scholars, the film includes tests of his inventions, including his tank and parachute.
  • Hold a small piece of light fabric or toy parachute above your head and demonstrate how slowly the object floats to the ground.
British Dictionary definitions for parachute

parachute

/ˈpærəˌʃuːt/
noun
1.
  1. a device used to retard the fall of a man or package from an aircraft, consisting of a large fabric canopy connected to a harness
  2. (as modifier): parachute troops Sometimes shortened to chute See also brake parachute
verb
2.
(of troops, supplies, etc) to land or cause to land by parachute from an aircraft
3.
(in an election) to bring in (a candidate, esp someone well known) from outside the constituency
Derived Forms
parachutist, noun
Word Origin
C18: from French, from para-² + chute fall
Word Origin and History for parachute
n.

1784 (the year the use of one first was attempted, in Paris), from French parachute, literally "that which protects against a fall," hybrid coined by French aeronaut François Blanchard (1753-1809) from para- "defense against" (see para- (2)) + chute "a fall" (see chute).

PARACHUTE, a kind of large and strong umbrella, contrived to break a person's fall from an airballoon, should any accident happen to the balloon at a high elevation. ["Supplement to the Encyclopaedia or Dictionary of Arts and Sciences," Philadelphia, 1803]

v.

1807, from parachute (n.). Related: Parachuted; parachuting.

Slang definitions & phrases for parachute

parachute

noun

: A mixture of crack cocaine and heroin known as ''parachute'' (1980s+ Narcotics)

Related Terms

golden parachute