Onager

Quick meaning: Onager is a noun meaning The Asiatic wild ass or hemione (Equus hemionus), an animal of the horse family native to Asia; specifically, the Persian onager, Persian wild ass, or Persian zebra (Equus hemionus onager).

Meaning

The Asiatic wild ass or hemione (Equus hemionus), an animal of the horse family native to Asia; specifically, the Persian onager, Persian wild ass, or Persian zebra (Equus hemionus onager).

More Meanings

1. (military, historical) A military engine acting like a sling which threw stones from a bag or wooden bucket powered by the torsion from a bundle of ropes or sinews operated by machinery; a torsion catapult.

Example Sentences

One of the onagers, however, having hurt its leg, could not be harnessed at present, and a few days' rest was necessary.

The onager, or wild aſs, is ſeen in ſtill greater abundance than the wild horſe; and the peculiarities of its kind are more diſtinctly marked than in thoſe of the tame one.

The onager, meaning "wild ass," derived its name from its powerful recoil, or kick, upon discharge; […] In addition, although Josephus described an onager in action hurling a 100-pound stone over 400 yards, most onagri achieved a shorter range than the ballista, thus exposing their crews to enemy archers.

Word Forms

• onagers
• onagri

Synonyms for onager

Depending on context, synonyms include hemionus, catapult, bricole.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include catapult, bricole, ass, dziggetai, hemione, ghorkhar.

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