launch1
v.
- set (a boat or ship) afloat, especially by sliding it into the water.
- send (a rocket, missile, etc.) on its course.
▸hurl forcefully.
▸
(launch into)
begin (something) energetically and enthusiastically.
- begin (an enterprise) or introduce (a new product).
n.
an act or instance of launching something.
Etymology
ME: from Anglo-Norman Fr. launcher, var. of OFr. lancier (see lance).
launch2
n.
- a large motorboat.
- historical the largest boat carried on a man-of-war.
Etymology
C17: from Sp. lancha ‘pinnace’, perh. from Malay lancharan, from lanchar ‘swift, nimble’.