a leafy green herb with a peppery taste, eaten raw in salads
She sprinkled fresh rocket over the pizza before serving.
I like the spicy kick that rocket adds to a salad.
✦ Middle English: from Old French ‘roquette’, from Latin ‘eruca’ meaning ‘arugula’.
a long, narrow vehicle or missile that burns fuel so fast it shoots high into the sky or outer space
The huge rocket blasted off from the launch pad at dawn.
Scientists monitored the rocket as it entered orbit around Earth.
✦ early 17th century: from Italian ‘rocchetto’ meaning ‘bobbin’, because early rockets resembled spools of thread
a firework that flies high before exploding with light and sound
Children cheered as the colorful rocket burst above the park.
He lit the fuse and stepped back to watch the rocket soar.
✦ Derived from the general sense of rocket as something that shoots upward quickly.
to move or increase very quickly and suddenly
Housing prices have rocketed in the past year.
The car rocketed down the track, leaving its rivals behind.
✦ figurative use from the noun ‘rocket’, transferring the idea of swift upward movement to prices, speeds, etc. (early 20th century)
