Dictionary

onager en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈɔː-/ (General-American)
• /ˈɒnəd͡ʒə/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /-ɡə/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈɑnəd͡ʒɚ/ (General-American)

Etymology

From Middle English onager, onagir (“wild ass; military catapult”), from Anglo-Norman onager, Middle French onager, onagre, Old French onager, onagre (“wild ass; military catapult”) (modern French onagre), from Late Latin onager (“large siege engine”), Latin onager (“wild ass”), from Hellenistic Ancient Greek ὄναγρος (ónagros, “wild ass”), Byzantine Ancient Greek ὄναγρος (ónagros, “large siege engine”), from ὄνος (ónos, “ass”) + ἄγριος (ágrios, “wild”) (from ᾰ̓γρός (ăgrós, “countryside; field”) (possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- (“to drive”)) + -ῐος (-ĭos, suffix forming adjectives)). The “military engine” sense alludes to the strong recoil of the engine, likened to an onager’s kick; see the 2007 quotation.

Meanings

1. 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).
   • One of the onagers, however, having hurt its leg, could not be harnessed at present, and a few days' rest was necessary. 1875, Jules Verne, chapter VI, in W[illiam] H[enry] G[iles] Kingston [actually Agnes Kinloch Kingston], transl., The Mysterious Island: The Secret of the Island: Translated from the French, volume III, London: Sampson Low, Marston, Low, & Searle […], →OCLC, pages 82–83:
   • [I]f the czigithai is not the ſame with the zebra, it may be the Aſiatic animal called onager or wild aſs. The onager ſhould not be confounded with the zebra; but I am uncertain whether the ſame remark is applicable to the onager and czigithai; for, from comparing the relations of travellers, it appears, that there are different kinds of wild aſſes, of which the onager is the moſt remarkable. […] The ſwiftneſs of the onager is mentioned by travellers, who remark, that he runs with ſuch rapidity as to eſcape the hunters, though mounted on horſes; […] 1785, Count de Buffon [i.e., Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon], “The Zebra. [Supplement.]”, in William Smellie, transl., Natural History, General and Particular, … Translated into English. […], 2nd edition, volume VI, London: Printed for W[illiam] Strahan and T[homas] Cadell, […], →OCLC, page 275:
   • 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. 1791, Oliver Goldsmith, “Of the Ass”, in An History of the Earth, and Animated Nature. […], new edition, volume II, London: […] F[rancis] Wingrave, successor to Mr. [John] Nourse, […], →OCLC, page 345:
2. (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.
   • 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. 2007, Jeff Kinard, “Ancient and Medieval Artillery”, in Artillery: An Illustrated History of Its Impact (Weapons and Warfare Series), Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, →ISBN, page 17:

Forms

Coordinates

trebuchet · mangonel

Hypernyms

catapult

Hyponyms

achdari (wild ass) · Mesopotamian onager (wild ass) · hemippe (wild ass) · khur (wild ass) · chigetai (wild ass) · Indian wild ass (wild ass) · Syrian onager (wild ass) · koulan (wild ass) · Syrian wild ass (wild ass) · dziggetai (wild ass) · kulan (wild ass) · Mongolian wild ass (wild ass) · khulan (wild ass)

Relateds

onagga

Synonyms

hemionus

Translations (48)

cmn 野驢炮 /野驴炮 (military engine) · id keledai asia (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ar أَخْدَر (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · syc ܥܪܕܐ (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · syc ܥܪܕܬܐ (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ar عَيْر (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · grc ὄναγρος (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ota یابان اشكی (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ru она́гр (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · syc ܥܪܕܐ (military engine) · la onager (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · pl onager (military engine) · sh onager (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · pal gwl (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ar عِلْج (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ar فَرَأ (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ar فَرَاء (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · grc ἡμίονος ἀγροτέρα (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · nl onager (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · he פֶּרֶא (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ca onagre (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · fr onagre (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · pt onagro (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · pl onager (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · it onagro (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · fr onagre (military engine) · pt onagro (military engine) · nl onager (military engine) · de Onager (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · es onagro (military engine) · la onager (military engine) · ang wilde assa (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · xcl ցիռ (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · tr yaban eşeği (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · fi puoliaasi (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ota منجنیق (military engine) · xcl իշավայրի (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · fi onageri (military engine) · fr hémione (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · ca onagre (military engine) · ug قۇلان (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · fi onageri (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · sh divlji magarac (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · uga 𐎔𐎈𐎍 (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · de Onager (military engine) · es onagro (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · bg азиатско диво магаре (Asiatic wild ass or hemione) · cmn 中亞野驢 /中亚野驴 (Asiatic wild ass or hemione)

wikidata: Q19779 · wikipedia: Neurathen Castle · wikidata: Q180960 · wikipedia: Rostov Oblast